Harry's New Guardian
by Healer Pomfrey
Summary: Due to health problems Harry has to spend parts of his sixth year in the Muggle world. AU from the end of fifth year onwards, partly OOC, partly childfic/de-aging, sick!Harry. Main characters: Harry, Hermione, Minerva, Poppy, and Severus. HP/HG
1. Chapter 1

**Harry's New Guardian by Healer Pomfrey**

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**Chapter 1**

Harry fiercely rubbed his eyes. Somehow, since he had returned to his relatives at the end of his fifth year at Hogwarts, his head and eyes had begun to hurt. At first he had believed lack of sleep to be the reason, but even two months later, during which he had been able to sleep ten hours each night, his condition hadn't improved.

From his experience, he knew that he couldn't ask his aunt for help, and since his broom was still confiscated at Hogwarts he couldn't fly to the school to search out Madam Pomfrey's help either. Fortunately, his headache was bearable, and his eyes were only slightly clouded and a white liquid was coming out of them, which was more unnerving than painful.

By the time he was going back to Hogwarts, he was already used to being in constant pain and to wipe his eyes rubbing out something white every few minutes.

"Harry looks worse for the wear," Hermione whispered to Ron while Harry talked to Neville on their way from the carriages that brought them up to the castle into the Great Hall.

"That's true; he looks as if he had cried a lot," Ron replied, looking over to his friend in concern.

"He's probably still mourning because of Sirius," Hermione said pensively, before they sat down at the Gryffindor table next to their friend to watch the Sorting.

"Harry, are you feeling all right?" Hermione asked hesitantly, seeing that Harry was more or less playing with his food.

"Yes of course, I m fine," Harry replied, surprised how observing his friend was.

HP THE TEACHERS' POV HP

"Now what's Gryffindor's newest relationship tragedy?" Professor Snape sneered at lunchtime, just after his Potions class with the sixth years Gryffindors and Slytherins.

"Why do you assume that there is something to tell?" the Headmaster asked interestedly.

"Did you get a look at Potter?" the Potions Master replied smirking. "His eyes are red as if he cried the whole night."

"And? Did you confront him and ask what was wrong?" Professor McGonagall enquired in obvious concern for her student.

"Of course not. He wouldn't tell me the truth anyway," her younger colleague replied, raising an eyebrow at his former teacher.

HP HARRY'S POV HP

"How was your Potions class?" Ron enquired. He hadn't been admitted to the Potions NEWT class because he didn't receive the required grades in his OWLs in contrary to Harry, who had somehow managed to get a sufficient grade.

"Well, after Professor Snape told us that he couldn't understand how some of us managed to get into the class, he held a monologue about how difficult the class was going to be and that half of us was too much of a dunderhead to follow the class anyway," Hermione explained, before Harry interrupted her.

"Of course he was looking at me the whole time during his speech." '_Does he really assume the Ministry would give me an O in my Potions OWL as a present?_' he mused, throwing an upset glance at the Potions Master at the Head table.

"Well, yes, I think he did," Hermione admitted, before she continued, "Afterwards he let us brew a Healing potion. It was interesting, but now it's time to head to Transfiguration. I've been looking forward to that the whole morning."

Tiredly rubbing his eyes, Harry followed his friends to the Transfiguration classroom, thinking, '_Well, I preferred if it was already after dinner; I don't know why, but my headache seems worse today_.'

HP MINERVA'S POV HP

The sixth years Gryffindors and Slytherins began to file into the classroom. Professor McGonagall observed as Hermione was the first to enter the room. The girl headed straight to a seat in the first row, followed immediately by her best friends Ron and Harry. The teacher unobtrusively threw a concerned look at the smallest of the trio, seeing that Harry's eyes were indeed red as if he had cried the whole night. Watching him over the class, she noticed that the boy was not his usual self that day.

'_Maybe he really has love problems_,' Minerva mused. '_But his affair with Miss Chang is long over, and I didn't know that he already had a new one. I always imagined that he would get together with Ms. Weasley, seeing how fond of him she seems to be_.'

"Excuse me, Professor, but could you please explain when and under which circumstances this spell was invented?"

Hermione's question pulled the teacher out of her reverie. Professor McGonagall quickly gave the girl the awaited answer, before she went back to her musings about Harry. '_Maybe he is ill_,' she thought, watching the boy's white face. '_In that case, I should keep him after the end of the class and ask what is wrong. On the other hand, if he has problems with a girl, he wouldn't want to confide in me; on the contrary, he could be very angry if I asked him_.'

At the end of the class, the teacher had yet to come to a decision. '_I'll just ask Ms. Granger if she knows something and if not I'm going to wait until tomorrow. If he still looks like this tomorrow, I'll ask him straight away_,' she decided and called Hermione over when she dismissed the students.

"Miss Granger," she gently addressed her student, "do you have an idea what is wrong with Mr. Potter?"

Hermione sighed. "No Professor, I don't know what's wrong. I asked him yesterday evening if he was all right, and I asked him again this morning, but he keeps saying that he's fine in spite of looking outright ill."

"So you don't think he cried about something but he is ill," McGonagall asked, giving the girl a piercing look.

"I'm not sure," Hermione admitted. "I know that he's still grieving about the loss of Sirius, but at least I didn't see him cry. I will try to find something out tonight, and if I get to know anything, I'll contact you, Professor."

"That would be good. Thank you, Miss Granger," the teacher replied gratefully. "I'm going to wait until tomorrow morning then, before I'll ask him what is wrong. You may leave. What is your next class?"

"We don't have any more classes today," Hermione replied. "Thank you Professor, I mean... for worrying about Harry. I believe that he really needs it. He has nobody, except for Ron and me of course, who helps him or worries about him."

"His aunt must be concerned about him too, mustn't she?" Minerva asked, surprised at the revelation, her mouth stretched to a thin line.

"No Professor, his relatives don't care about him at all. As far as I know, they don't like him because they hate magic, and they don't even feed him properly. Did you notice how much skinnier he is now than at the end of the last school year?" With that Hermione quickly left the room and headed back to Gryffindor to search for Harry and Ron, leaving a very thoughtful Head of House behind.

HP HARRY'S POV HP

Harry and Ron were sitting in the Gryffindor common room doing their homework. As usual, Harry was rubbing his eyes every few minutes; however, he felt extremely uncomfortable. '_I just hope nobody notices that my eyes are strange, especially not the white thing that's coming out of them_,' he mused, worriedly rubbing his eyes again and again. '_Maybe I should go and ask Madam Pomfrey about it_,' he considered, only to dismiss the thought quickly when he remembered, '_it could be a Muggle disease, which she hasn't even heard about_.' Noticing that Hermione entered the room, Harry quickly buried his eyes along with his nose in his book, pretending to be concentrated on his homework.

"Harry, I know that I already asked you, but are you really feeling all right?" Hermione asked once more, noticing that Harry was rubbing his forehead as if he had a headache.

"Yes, I'm fine; I just have a bit of a headache," Harry replied impatiently, pretending to continue his work, unaware of the concerned looks his friends gave him. However, during the evening his headache became so bad that he excused himself and went to bed extremely early.

When Harry woke up in the morning, he felt absolutely horrible. His eyes seemed to be glued together, so that he couldn't easily open them; his head felt as if someone had hit him with a huge book, and he was feeling hot and cold at the same time.

Hearing Ron's voice trying to wake him up for breakfast, Harry could only groan. "I don't want breakfast. Can you wake me up once more in time for classes, please?"

"All right, mate; we'll wake you," Ron promised and left the room.

A short time later, Harry woke up to a cool hand on his forehead, and his Head of House's voice penetrated his ear. "Good morning Mr. Potter. What's wrong with you? Can you open your eyes for me?"

Harry sighed and painfully cracked his eyes open, mumbling, "Good morning Professor. I'm sorry, I'm getting up now."

"No, I don't think you will," Professor McGonagall replied firmly. "You're feverish, and I want Madam Pomfrey to check on you. Stay put; I'll be back in a minute."

Feeling too ill to care what was happening, Harry closed his eyes and waited for the things to come, tiredly wiping his eyes. A few minutes later, he heard Madam Pomfrey enter the room together with Professor McGonagall.

"Good morning Mr. Potter," the Healer said, before she began to wave her wand at him.

"Good morning, Madam Pomfrey," Harry replied, glancing at his Head of House, who was watching Madam Pomfrey's every move with a concerned expression on her face.

After a few minutes, the Mediwitch unobtrusively threw a silencing spell over her colleague and herself and said gravely, "I'm sorry, Minerva, but I'm afraid that Harry cannot remain at Hogwarts. He has to return to the Muggle world."

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HP

_I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to __Mrs. Rowling__, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Professor McGonagall gave her friend a shocked look. "Why do you think so, Poppy?"

The Healer sighed, quickly removed the Silencing spell, and sat down on the edge of Harry's bed, motioning her friend to do the same. "Since when do you have these problems, Mr. Potter?"

"With my eyes you mean?" Harry asked back sheepishly.

"Yes."

"Nearly three months," Harry replied in a hardly audible voice, only to add, "but it wasn't so bad," when he heard the two women gasp.

"You have a bad infection of your conjunctiva, a splitting headache, and you're running quite a fever, Mr. Potter," the Healer informed him sternly. "Normally, if you have problems with an eye infection, you have to see a Healer or at least a doctor after a maximum of three days. Why didn't you tell your aunt that you were having problems?"

Harry sighed but felt too sick to care anymore and answered in a hardly audible voice, "Because I'm not allowed to complain."

He noticed that the Healer's face softened immediately, when she explained, "You have a magical disease that causes your eye infection, and due to the fact that it has remained untreated for three months, it has progressed and is already affecting your brain. It will take about a year to go away completely, even with potions. Unfortunately, as you certainly have noticed you will feel better in a Muggle environment than in a magical one, because magic aggravates your condition even further. Therefore, I'm afraid that you will have to return to your relatives for at least a few months."

"No!" Harry replied, struggling to sit up with an expression of absolute horror written on his face. "Please, Madam Pomfrey, I do everything you want me to do, but please don't send me back there!"

"It's all right, Harry," his Head of House threw in. "Don't let yourself get so upset; you'll only aggravate your condition further. We'll think about what to do and try to find a solution without sending you back to your relatives."

Seeing that Harry gave her a panicked look, she reached out to gently stroke his flushed cheeks and said softly, "Don't worry, Harry; I already have an idea, but I must speak with the Headmaster first. Madam Pomfrey will take you with her to the hospital wing, and I'll visit you after my last class. Until then I hope to have a plan, so that we'll be able to move you during the evening."

With the impression of being stuck in a nightmare, Harry slowly walked to the hospital wing, grateful that Madam Pomfrey steadied his arm, because he felt extremely dizzy in spite of the potions, which the Healer had made him drink, before she had asked him if he could get up and walk. He was led to a bed in the crispy white hospital wing and thankfully lay down, feeling too sick to even notice that Madam Pomfrey gently tucked him in and spelled a sleeping potion into his stomach.

HP MINERVA'S POV HP

With a relieved sigh Professor McGonagall dismissed the students of her last afternoon class after absentmindedly teaching all her classes, while she was feverishly thinking about what to do with Harry. When she walked over to the hospital wing to discuss the matter with Dumbledore and Pomfrey, she was determined to not let them return the boy to his relatives.

'_It will be a hard fight with Albus, but I'm going to fight. If I could get the guardianship over him, he would be able to stay at McGonagall Manor for the time being. It's a Muggle place even if it is surrounded by strong magical wards. I could return there after classes and stay overnight as well during lunchtime in order to look after him and maybe even teach him a bit_,' she mused. From the corner of her eyes, she saw that Harry was fast asleep when she strode through the hospital wing into her friend's office, where the Headmaster and the Healer were already waiting for her.

"Before you argue about blood wards and such things, hear me out, Albus," she asked the Headmaster, throwing him a pleading glance, before she suggested to her two colleagues to take Harry in and let him live at McGonagall Manor.

The Headmaster thoughtfully opened his mouth to contradict, but the Healer beat him with her answer. "I think that's a very good idea, Minerva," she said warmly. "Moreover, Harry doesn't have to remain at McGonagall Manor the whole day. Provided that his condition is well enough, he could even attend his classes here during the day and return to the Manor afterwards."

"Well, I'm not sure if McGonagall Manor is safe enough for Harry," Dumbledore spoke up pensively; moreover, you are my deputy and are the Gryffindor Head of House. How are you planning to fulfil your duties as Head of House if you spend all the time apart from classes at home?"

"We can set up a direct Floo connection from the Gryffindor common room to my office at McGonagall Manor, and you are only one step through the fireplace away anyway," McGonagall replied firmly as if she had spent hours to think about the matter.

Still the Headmaster was not convinced. "What will Harry's fellow House mates say, if you clearly favour him by taking him to his home?"

"I won't favour him, Albus; I'm going to get the guardianship over him. I will not let you send him back to his relatives anymore."

"Albus, I suggest that you agree to Minerva's plans; otherwise I feel responsible to inform the Ministry about child abuse in the Dursleys' home," Pomfrey threw in sternly. "They ignored Harry's illness over more than two months, although they should have taken him to a Healer or at least a doctor after three days at the most, and they were not feeding him properly. Every year when he comes back from the Dursleys he is underweight, and it's not different this year."

Dumbledore looked at his deputy and the Healer, knowing that they had won. "All right," he admitted. "Minerva, you may apply for the permanent guardianship over Harry and you may take Harry to McGonagall Manor. However, on Saturday morning, all of the Hogwarts teachers have to go and work together to strengthen the wards around the Manor, so that Harry will be safe there."

"Thank you, Albus," Minerva replied with relief and turned to Pomfrey in order to receive detailed instructions about how to care for Harry.

Madam Pomfrey gathered a few items on her desk. "These are eye drops, and Harry needs one drop in each eye twice a day. I already showed him how to do it, but you'll have to see if he is able to apply the drops by himself; otherwise you have to do it for him. If he has a fever, you have to give him a spoon full of this fever reducer twice or if necessary three times a day. I'd like you to take his temperature with this magical thermometer here in the morning and in the evening; it is charmed so that I can see the results here as well." She pointed to the last phial. "This is a headache potion; give him a spoon full twice a day, if he has a headache, which will be the case most of the time, even if he denies it."

The Healer sighed, before she continued, "He will need one more potion to prevent brain damage. However, I have to ask Severus to brew that for him, which will take at least a day if not two, because it is as difficult to brew as the Wolfsbane and it takes a whole day until it's finished."

The professor took the items, putting them into her robe pocket. "So, I can bring Harry with me to Hogwarts each morning and take him home with me after classes?" she enquired, giving her friend a questioning look.

"No Minerva. You must take his temperature in the morning, and if he doesn't have a fever, which means if the thermometer flares green or yellow, and if he is feeling well enough to attend classes, then, and only then, he may come to Hogwarts with you," the Healer said sternly. "In case it flares yellow, I want to see him during lunch break. Apart from that, I want to check on him at least once a week. Please tell him to come to see me every Friday straight after lunch. If he is not here on a Friday, I will come over some time during the weekend. Don't hesitate to call me anytime. Floo-ing to McGonagall Manor is not different to using the internal Floo network."

"All right, Poppy; thanks for your help," McGonagall replied gratefully and left the office, noticing that Harry seemed to have woken up in the meantime. She sat down on the edge of his bed and told him what she had discussed with her colleagues on his behalf.

"You're going to become my guardian and I'm going to live with you?" Harry asked in absolute surprise, completely unable to imagine living together with his stern Head of House, in her own Manor at that.

"Provided that it's all right with you, Mr. Potter; otherwise, you'll have to return to your relatives."

"It's all right, I can return to my relatives in the evening. If I can come here during the day, it's not so bad," Harry replied, giving his Head of House a hesitant glance. "I'll be all right, Professor."

"Well, all right, then I'm going to accompany you to your relatives," the professor replied, seeming slightly put out by her student's reaction.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"What's wrong, Minerva?" Madam Pomfrey asked surprised when Harry and the teacher entered her office.

"Harry prefers to return to his relatives," McGonagall explained shortly, and if it wasn't for her childhood friend, the Healer wouldn't have noticed the hurt in the teacher's voice.

"No," Pomfrey replied immediately, turning to Harry. "Mr. Potter, are you sure that you want to go back to your relatives, who didn't take you to a doctor when you needed it, and who didn't even feed you properly? Wouldn't it be better to be with a witch, who cares about you and willingly decided to take you in?"

"Of course," Harry replied in a hardly audible voice, "but I don't want to be a burden to anyone and certainly not to Professor McGonagall."

"Harry, you're not a burden, not to me and not to anyone else, and you're very welcome to live at McGonagall Manor with me. Why don't we go and try it out for a day or two? It will take a day to apply for the guardianship anyway."

"I'm sorry, Professor; if you really don't mind, I'd like that very much, and from my side we don't even have to try it out," Harry replied, and a small smile played on his lips.

McGonagall stepped into the fireplace and motioned Harry to stand beside her, before she called out, "McGonagall Manor."

Harry stumbled out of the fireplace, finding himself in an office, which resembled that of Professor McGonagall at Hogwarts. The teacher led him into a huge living room that was very bright because of the large windows and white walls surrounding the room. "Please lie down here on the sofa for a while. I'll ask the house elves to prepare a room for you now. Since Madam Pomfrey insisted that you have to go back to bed immediately, I'll give you a tour around the house at another time," McGonagall explained.

Harry grudgingly obeyed, and an instant later, two house elves appeared with a pop. "These are Rose and Rory," the professor introduced the two elves. "Rose and Rory, this is Harry Potter. He is going to stay here with us from now on. Can you please prepare the room next to the Master's bedroom for Harry?"

"Of course Mistress Minerva," Rory replied, and both elves disappeared with a pop only to return five minutes later. "The room for Master Harry is ready, Mistress Minerva," Rose explained in a soft voice.

"Thank you, Rose and Rory. Harry is sick and has to stay here in the Manor during the nights; therefore, I'm going to stay here with him during the next months. If his condition is well enough in the morning, I can take him to Hogwarts with me, where he is a sixth year Gryffindor. Otherwise, he'll have to stay in your care during the day."

"Don't worry, Mistress McGonagall, Rose and Rory will be looking after Master Harry," Rory promised and bowed slightly, causing Harry to wonder why these two house elves spoke grammatically correct English.

McGonagall thanked them gently, before she remembered something. "Oh, I need you to go to Hogwarts and fetch Harry's belongings from the Gryffindor sixth year boys' dormitory."

The two elves gave her a comforting nod and popped away. "All right Harry, let me show you your room; then you can decide if you want to go to bed or remain here on the sofa. It's up to you as long as you lie down and rest."

Harry followed the professor into his new room, which was huge and had a large window going out into a beautiful garden. There was a four poster bed, a desk with a chair, and a wardrobe, and the room was coloured in a light blue. Harry looked in awe at the comfortable room. "Oh, this is beautiful, Professor," he spoke up, completely amazed.

"I'm glad you like it," Professor McGonagall replied. "While we are here, you don't have to call me professor, Harry. You may call me Minerva, provided that you don't forget my formal name when we're back at school."

"All right, err... Minerva. I'll do my best to remember it," Harry replied, giving his Head of House a grateful smile.

"Now, do you want to lie down here, or do you want to rest on the sofa, Harry?" Seeing that Harry gave her an indifferent look, she added, "I have to floo back to Hogwarts in order to fetch some things from my office since I need to work here during the next months, but it will only take me ten minutes, and we should eat dinner soon. Therefore, it might be good if you returned to the living room, provided that you feel well enough."

"All right Professor," Harry agreed and followed the woman down the stairs, making himself comfortable on the sofa once more. He gave the teacher a grateful smile when she covered him with a warm blanket and gently tucked him in.

By the time Minerva returned from Hogwarts, Harry was already fast asleep. The teacher sat down on the edge of the sofa, unsure if she should wake the boy up for dinner or if she should let him sleep. She gave her student a piercing look, noticing that pearls of sweat were beginning to drop down from his temples and that his hair was sticking to his forehead. '_I can't imagine that he'll be well enough to attend classes tomorrow_,' she mused and decided to let him sleep. '_He won't be able to eat much anyway_,' she thought and finally sat down on the other side of the table to get some work done.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Two hours later, Harry was still peacefully asleep when all of a sudden the fireplace in the office announced Professor Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey. Minerva quickly pointed her wand at the fireplace in the living room to divert the visitors to the room where she and Harry were spending the evening.

"Hello Minerva," Madam Pomfrey said, stepping out of the fireplace. "How are you faring?"

The Headmaster followed immediately. "Good evening, Minerva. Is everything all right here?"

Minerva sighed. "Yes, everything is all right; however, Harry has been asleep for hours now. We didn't even have dinner yet, but I'm not sure if I should wake him up. He doesn't look very good." She gave the Healer a questioning look, noticing that Madam Pomfrey was already waving her wand at Harry.

"You better let him sleep," she finally said. "His fever is up to 39.3 degrees, which is even higher than it was in the afternoon, and he has a splitting headache. I'm going to give him his potions right now as well as an additional nutrient potion, so that you don't have to worry about making him eat something, which he certainly doesn't want. He won't be able to attend classes in the morning, but I want you to check on him nevertheless." She turned back to Harry and spelled the eye drops into his eyes as well as the headache potion, the fever reducer, and the nutrient potion into his stomach.

"Minerva," Dumbledore began to speak gently, "I will take over your classes tomorrow. Of course this has to be an exception, and I cannot do this every time Harry's condition doesn't allow him to floo to the school; however, I believe that it would be for the best if you stayed here with him tomorrow. Afterwards, you have the weekend to settle in anyway, and hopefully Harry will be better on Monday morning."

"I think that would be the best, Albus," Pomfrey agreed immediately.

"Thank you, Albus, that would be extremely helpful," Minerva replied gratefully, throwing a glance at Harry.

"You need some time to go to the Ministry concerning the guardianship anyway," the Headmaster reminded his deputy.

"I don't have to take Harry with me, do I?" Minerva gave Dumbledore an enquiring look.

"It would be easier, if he could accompany you, but if he is too ill, you'll just have to go alone," the Headmaster replied gently.

While Dumbledore had to return to his office, Madam Pomfrey stayed for two more hours, having tea with Minerva, but Harry didn't wake up. Only when her friend returned to Hogwarts, Minerva asked Rory to take Harry back into his own room, before she went up into the child's room and carefully tucked him in.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

When Harry woke up in the morning, he felt slightly better than on the previous day. Unaware of the fact that Minerva had asked Rose to alert her when Harry woke up, he was surprised when the teacher entered his room mere minutes after he had woken up.

"Good morning, Harry. How are you feeling?" Minerva asked gently, sitting down on the edge of his bed.

"A bit better," Harry replied, wondering if he really was supposed to tell the truth or if the teacher was just asking out of politeness. '_No, Madam Pomfrey said she cared about me, didn't she_?' he mused, while Minerva stuck the business end of the magical thermometer under his tongue. Harry looked down at the thermometer that looked like a short grey snake, which was moving its tail around. '_Extremely strange_,' he thought, trying to catch the professor's attention, who was just bathing his flushed face with a cool cloth, trying not to get in the way of the thermometer's tail.

Finally, the tail stopped its movement, dropped down and slowly pulled up until it stopped at a point slightly over a horizontal position. The grey tail changed to orange, and the numbers 38.8 were displayed on the tail.

Harry sighed in relief, when the professor took the strange thing back. "This is extremely strange," he said, causing the teacher to smile at him.

"Yes, Harry, this is indeed strange, and it's an invention of my best friend, Poppy Pomfrey. She invented it a long time ago during our school days, before we went on holidays with a large group of friends, knowing that we wouldn't be allowed to use magic during that time. The funniest thing of all was that Poppy was the one, who had to use it first, because she came down with a bad cold and I made her take her temperature with it," Minerva told Harry, chuckling. "Well, Harry, you'll have to stay in bed, and I'm going to remain here with you today since Professor Dumbledore promised to take over my classes, so that I can stay with you. Would you like to rest here or on the sofa in the living room?" she asked gently.

"Won't I disturb you, if I stay on the sofa?" Harry asked anxiously.

"Not at all," Minerva replied gently. "Moreover, I'll have to make a short trip to the Ministry in order to apply for the guardianship, provided that you're sure you want me to become your guardian instead of the Dursleys." She gave Harry a questioning look.

"Of course, Professor; I am definitely sure. Thanks a lot," Harry replied gratefully.

"Very well; I don't think it'll take long. I'll probably be back in half an hour. Shall I go first, or would you prefer to have breakfast first?"

"I'm not hungry, Professor," Harry replied tiredly. "If you go first, I'll just stay here and try to sleep a bit more."

"All right, Harry," Minerva replied, glancing worriedly at the boy, while she carefully placed a cool cloth on his forehead, before she left the room to head for the Ministry, glad that she had already received Harry's signature on the day before since he really seemed unwell this morning.

HP

Twenty minutes later, Minerva was waiting for the guardian documents at the family department, when all of a sudden the chief of the department approached her. "I'm very sorry, Professor McGonagall, but the guardianship over Harry Potter is specified as fixed on the Dursley family and Professor Dumbledore. Moreover, it is indicated as nonnegotiable. This is a Minister's decision, which we cannot overwrite."

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HP

_Thanks to the five kind people, who reviewed! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Minerva sighed. "In that case, I'd like to speak with Minister Scrimgeour personally please."

"Very well, Professor, please follow me," the young man, who had once been one of her students at Hogwarts, replied politely and led Minerva to the Minister's office.

"Hello Rufus," she greeted the Minister, who was an old friend of her since their Hogwarts days.

"Oh Minerva, I'm sorry; Albus contacted me about the guardianship over the Potter boy, and I forgot to give the information to the respective department. Please forgive me." He turned to the employee. "Please change the wizarding as well as the Muggle guardianship completely in favour of Minerva McGonagall and bring the certificate here to my office. Now, Minerva, let's have a cup of tea together."

"All right, Minister," the man replied, hurrying away. Ten minutes later, he returned with the completed guardianship parchments and handed them over to Minerva, apologizing profoundly.

"Very well, Minerva, we will send the respective documents to the Muggle authorities, and the Dursleys' guardianship will be overwritten automatically," the Minister informed Harry's new guardian, who gave her old friend a grateful smile.

HP AT MCGONAGALL MANOR HP

Back at home, Minerva went straight into Harry's room, seeing that the boy was still sleeping. '_He sleeps a lot_,' she mused and worriedly placed a hand on his forehead, noticing that he still felt very warm in spite of the potions she had administered an hour ago. '_I hope Poppy will come over again today; I'm definitely not the right person to look after a sick student_,' she thought and once more asked Rose to alert her if Harry woke up, before she headed down to her office to grade the first years' homework.

At lunchtime, Harry had yet to get up and Minerva was slowly becoming worried. She sat down on the edge of his bed and again felt his forehead, pondering if it was possible to take the boy's temperature under his armpit with Poppy's strange thermometer. She decided to try it out and had just spelled Harry's pyjamas down over his shoulder and stuck the snake under his armpit, when Harry shivered violently and lazily opened his eyes.

"How are you feeling, Harry?" Minerva asked softly, pulling his covers up to his chin.

"I don't know," Harry replied, feeling too sick to think about if it was better or worse than in the morning. "I don't feel so good."

"Let's see if your fever has come down a bit. If it is worse, I'll ask Madam Pomfrey to check on you," Minerva said calmingly, gently wiping the boy's flushed face with the cool cloth. "38.5," Minerva read from the orange tail of the snake. "Do you feel up to coming down to the living room for lunch, Harry?"

"I'm not hungry," Harry replied and slowly scrambled out of his bed, shivering violently from the loss of his warm covers.

"Rory!" Minerva called the house elf. "Could you please take Harry back to the sofa in the living room? He's feeling too sick to walk."

"Of course I can walk," Harry protested immediately.

"Rory can take you, Master Harry; it's no problem at all," the house elf assured him, bowing his head, before he popped away with Harry.

Seconds later, Harry found himself sitting on the sofa in the living room, where the elves had prepared lunch.

"Harry, I know that you probably don't feel like eating, but you have to eat a bit," Minerva told the boy in her stern teacher's voice, and Harry didn't dare not to comply.

He tried a bit of everything, and only when he thought that he was going to be sick if he ate anything else, Minerva was contented with the amount of food he ate.

"Professor, did Madam Pomfrey say anything, how I could get this illness? I mean, did I get it like people get the flu, or was I hit by a spell that did this?"

"I'm sorry, Harry, but I have no idea," Minerva replied thoughtfully. "But we can ask Madam Pomfrey when she comes to check on you the next time."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

When Madam Pomfrey came to check on Harry and to bring the brain potion she handed Minerva a phial with a thickly red liquid in it and explained, "Harry has to take one spoon full of it each day. Unfortunately, this potion might cause dizziness and nausea; therefore, I suggest that he takes it just before going to bed."

"All right, Poppy, thank you. Harry wanted to know how he managed to contract the disease. Do you have an explanation for him?"

"Well, I can only guess. It is possible to get it like you can get any disease. However it's very rare and, considering his age and the events right before he fell ill, the possibility that he was hit with a spell during the fight at the Ministry is much larger I think. Now, I have to check on Harry and return to Hogwarts. The Slytherin Quidditch captain saw fit to let his team train in the heavy rain for three hours, and now the whole team is in the hospital wing with bad colds. I hope to release them all in the morning, but I shouldn't be away for too long tonight. Albus will probably come to keep you company later on."

Minerva laughed. "Do I seem very lonely here, Poppy?"

"Yes Minnie, of course," Pomfrey laughed back and began to wave her wand at Harry, clucking disapprovingly.

"Is he all right, Poppy?" Minerva asked, her voice laced with concern. "He has more or less been asleep the whole day."

Her friend sighed. "Well, as I told you it will probably take a year for him to recover completely, and his condition will change in waves. There will be days, on which he feels better and merely has a temperature, and there will be weeks, during which his headache worsens, his fever goes up, and he remains asleep for longer times. I'm sorry Minerva, but you have to be patient." She handed Minerva a parchment. "Here, write down any results or observations on these parchments. I have a copy in my office and can see what you write and add comments that might help you." She pointed her wand at the parchment, and it filled itself with the results of her check-up on Harry, before she excused herself and took the Floo back to Hogwarts.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Harry remained mainly asleep during the whole weekend. On Monday morning, however, he felt slightly better. "May I attend classes?" he asked eagerly as soon as Minerva entered his room.

The teacher gave him a piercing look. "Are you feeling better today, Harry?"

"Yes, much better. I still have a headache, but it's not so bad, and I don't feel so feverish anymore."

"Well, let's check that out first," Minerva replied, sticking the snake thermometer under his tongue. She sat down on the edge of his bed and carefully placed her hand on his forehead, noticing that it felt slightly cooler.

The snake's tail flared yellow showing the number 38.0. Minerva sighed. "Well, it's not much better, and if it was one point higher, you wouldn't be allowed to go to school. If you're sure that you feel well enough, you may attend classes in the morning, but you'll have to go and see Madam Pomfrey straight after lunch. And if you feel worse before that, you will come to me, so that I can take you home. I don't care if it's in the middle of the class. Do you understand me, Harry?" she asked in her stern Head of Gryffindor voice, while she made him swallow his potions.

"Yes Professor," Harry replied automatically and scrambled out of bed to get ready for classes.

Fifty minutes, a shower, and a breakfast later, Harry stepped into the fireplace to floo into the professor's office at Hogwarts, followed immediately by his guardian. "We still have a bit of time," Minerva told him and motioned him to sit down on the sofa. "What class do you have first?" she asked, giving the boy a concerned look.

Harry quickly searched in his bag for his time table. "Potions," he groaned, glancing at his wrist watch. "No, I don't have time to sit down. I'll better head down to the dungeons."

"All right Harry. I'll see you at lunchtime in the Great Hall if not earlier. Please be careful."

"I will," Harry promised and left the office, dragging himself down to the dungeons.

"Harry!" Hermione shouted in happy surprise when Harry joined her in front of the Potions classroom just in the same instant as Professor Snape opened the door. "Are you allowed to attend classes? You still don't look well," she asked worriedly, giving her friend a piercing look.

"I feel a bit better today," Harry whispered back, "but I have to go to Madam Pomfrey after lunch to let her check on me."

"That's good," Hermione replied contentedly and concentrated her attention on the teacher.

"Today, we will brew a simple Healing Potion," the professor sneered, "and I advise everyone to pay attention, because you'll all drink your own potion afterwards."

Hermione gave Harry a concerned look and raised her hand. "Please, Professor, what are the effects of the potion?"

"That is for you to find out and tell me at the end of the class," Professor Snape sneered and pointed his wand to the blackboard, where the recipe appeared at once.

Harry tried hard to concentrate on the potion, which looked correct at one stage half through the brewing process when he glanced at Hermione's potion to confirm that he brewed accurately so far. However, all of a sudden, a voice hissed into his ear, "You better concentrate on your own potion, Potter."

From that time onwards, Harry could hardly concentrate any more, noticing in annoyance that his headache worsened and a wave of heat overcame him, causing him to shiver while he finished the potion.

"Harry, it should be light green and not dark orange," Hermione whispered in concern, while they filled the potion into small phials.

"All right now; drink one phial of your potion," the professor demanded.

"But Professor," Hermione spoke up, "Harry is under the influence of other potions, and the colour of his potion is obviously off. You cannot make him test his potion."

"I can and I will, Ms. Granger," the professor hissed, giving the girl a menacing glare. "Drink your potion NOW, everyone – including Mr. Potter for once!"

* * *

HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Harry unobtrusively waved his wand at the phial and gulped the potion down after noticing that the liquid had turned clear a mere second before he took the phial to his lip. '_Thank God, I managed to transfigure it into water. Who knows what would have happened otherwise_,' he thought in relief.

"Very tasty, sir," he mumbled to the professor, who was staring at him in anticipation of a reaction enabling him to make fun of the student.

"What was it?" Hermione asked in obvious concern as soon as the disappointed teacher had turned his back to them.

"Well, I don't know but I transfigured it into water before I drank it," Harry whispered back, causing the professor to turn back and tower over him.

"How dare you not follow my instructions?" Snape hissed, giving the boy a menacing glare.

"As Hermione already told you, it would have been much too dangerous," Harry replied, glaring back at the teacher. "However, I don't mind bottling another potion and taking it to Madam Pomfrey. If she doesn't mind me drinking the strange liquid, I'll do so," he suggested, causing the professor to angrily take fifty points from Gryffindor, right before he was called to the Slytherin side of the room, where Blaise Zabini had collapsed after consuming his potion.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

"Harry, are you feeling all right?" Hermione asked in concern when they left the classroom.

"I'm fine," Harry replied automatically. "Well, I was better before that class though," he added quietly, causing Hermione to feel his forehead.

"You're burning up, Harry. Are you sure that you want to attend more classes?"

"What do we have next?"

"History of Magic."

"Oh that's good," Harry replied in relief, "then I can rest for a while. I don't want to go home so soon."

"Oh, do you already think of it as your home? That's great, Harry," Hermione beamed.

"Well, yes, I really like it there, although I didn't see much yet, because I spent most of the weekend asleep," Harry admitted. "The two house elves are really nice, and the professor behaves completely different from how she behaves here."

"That's good; I'm so happy for you, Harry," Hermione told her friend, smiling, and pulled him over to a seat in the last row when they reached the classroom.

Harry put his arms on the table, resting his achy head on top of them, and slept until Hermione woke him up at the end of the class.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

When they reached the Transfiguration classroom for their last morning class, Harry noticed surprised that his guardian was already sitting at her desk. Minerva waved Harry and Hermione to her as soon as they had put down their bags on their tables in the front of the classroom. "Can one of you explain why Professor Snape... Are you all right, Harry?" she interrupted herself, giving the boy a piercing look.

"That's all Professor Snape's fault," Hermione blurted out and explained what had occurred in the Potions classroom.

"He wanted Harry to try his failed potion in spite of knowing that Harry is ill and has to take several potions, with which it could have interfered?" the Professor asked incredulously.

"Yes," Hermione confirmed, "and when Harry told me that he had transfigured it into water," Professor Snape became really angry and took fifty points from Gryffindor.

'_Wait until I'll tell Albus_,' Minerva thought to herself, before she said aloud, "Fifty points back to Gryffindor, and additional twenty points, Mr. Potter, for a well done Transfiguration in a situation of necessity."

"Thanks Professor," Harry replied, giving his guardian a tired smile.

"Harry, I don't think that you're well enough to attend any more classes," his Head of House told him, noticing his flushed cheeks and glassy eyes in concern.

"I know," Harry admitted, "but I'd like to remain just for Transfiguration, before I go back home."

"If you're sure," Minerva relented, smiling in surprise at his choice of words. '_Can it be that he already feels at home at McGonagall Manor although he merely slept through the weekend?_' she mused in amusement, while she thanked Hermione and Harry and motioned them to sit down.

Knowing that Harry was not in a condition to follow classes Minerva left him in peace and ordered him to take the Floo back home as soon as she had dismissed the students. Feeling too ill to argue, Harry obeyed and stepped into the fireplace.

HP THE TEACHER'S POV HP

During lunch in the Great Hall Minerva held a livid discussion with Professors Dumbledore and Snape. "Severus, how dare you make the students drink their failed Potions?" she asked, giving the Potions Master a stern look, before she told the Headmaster what Hermione had explained to her.

"A simple cure with a Bezoir would have cured your precious Potter boy within seconds," Snape sneered, glaring back at his former teacher.

Madam Pomfrey frowned angrily. "Severus, I do not wish to hear such a story again. You will not put the students in danger, especially not those, who are under the influence of potions, which I prescribed."

"Severus, I have to agree with Poppy in this case," Dumbledore said gently.

"I've already given Gryffindor the fifty points back and added twenty for Harry's brilliant Transfiguration work," Minerva told her colleagues.

"Where is he, by the way?" Pomfrey asked, searching the Gryffindor table.

"His fight with Severus has aggravated his condition so much that I had to send him home. He didn't even object but willingly stepped into the Floo."

"Then he must have felt really sick, Minerva," Pomfrey agreed, glaring daggers at the Potions Master, and promised, "I'll go and look after him during your afternoon classes."

"If he is so delicate, he shouldn't come to classes anyway," Snape sneered, rolling his eyes.

"Maybe we shouldn't let you teach such a dangerous class," McGonagall countered, sending the younger teacher an angry glare.

"Now now, behave yourselves, Minerva and Severus," Dumbledore admonished them harshly, noticing that half of the Gryffindor table seemed to be following the conversation at the Head table with obvious interest and amusement.

"I.am.not putting my students into danger," Minerva replied firmly with her mouth stretched to a thin line.

"Nor do I," Snape hissed back, causing the Transfiguration teacher and the Healer to snort unbelievingly.

"I better floo home and look after Harry," Minerva concluded the conversation and hurriedly left the Great Hall.

HP MINERVA'S POV HP

When Minerva returned to the Manor to check on Harry and make him eat lunch, Harry was fast asleep in his bed. His cheeks were flushed again, and his forehead was sweaty, making his hair stick to it. '_Attending three short classes shouldn't worsen his condition so much_,' she thought and sat down on the edge of his bed and looked down at him sadly. '_It was such a relief when he managed to receive an O in his Potions OWLs, but if Severus continues to hate him so much, he won't be able to continue that class until his NEWTs_,' she mused in concern. '_Maybe I can find someone, who could tutor him in private, so doesn't he have to attend Severus' classes? But who is there, who is adept enough at Potions?_'

Harry shivered a bit, causing Minerva to pull up his covers some more and worriedly feel his forehead. '_He is feverish again, but Poppy promised to look after him during the afternoon, so I won't bother him by checking on him now_,' Minerva decided, giving the boy a fond look. '_It feels good to be the guardian of such a fine boy_,' she mused. '_Maybe I can convince him to find a different career aspiration than that of becoming an Auror, perhaps a Healer or a teacher, so that he won't need Potions. Oh well, as a Healer he would need Potions, but Poppy could teach him what he needs to know_.'

A glance at her wrist watch showed Minerva that it was time to return to Hogwarts. She asked Rose and Rory to alert Madam Pomfrey if Harry woke up, provided that the Healer hadn't already looked in on the child.

"Of course Mistress Minerva, we will inform Mistress Poppy if Master Harry wakes up," Rose replied and both elves bowed deeply.

"Thank you, Rose and Rory," Minerva said gratefully and stepped into the fireplace.

HP POPPY'S POV HP

Two hours later, Madam Pomfrey entered Harry's room, noticing with concern that the boy was thrashing around violently. "Harry, wake up," she tried to rouse the child to no avail.

"Mistress Poppy, good that you're here," Rose said, popping up next to the Healer together with Rory.

"He has been like this for ten minutes, and we couldn't wake him up. We were just considering fetching you," Rory added.

'_He looks as if he was having a vision and was being put under the Cruciatus curse_,' Poppy mused, watching the boy with a horrified expression.

* * *

HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! They make me continue this story so fast :-) I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Even using the Enervate spell, Madam Pomfrey was not able to wake Harry up. She waved her wand at him to check on him in the meantime and spelled a strong fever reducing potion as well as a nutrient potion into his stomach, before she turned to Rory. "Could you please go to Hogwarts and speak to Minky, my house elf, who is responsible for the hospital wing? Please ask her for the Anti Cruciatus potion and bring me a small phial of it."

"Of course, Mistress Poppy, I know Minky," Rory replied and was gone with a pop.

As soon as Pomfrey had spelled the antidote against the dark curse into Harry's stomach, the boy visibly relaxed. However, his left hand was still pressed against his forehead and he didn't open his eyes.

HP HARRY'S POV HP

Harry suddenly found himself in a dark stone room. A Death Eater was standing in front of him.

"Malfoy," he heard himself say. "I didn't free you from Azkaban last night without a good reason. Your son has instructions to kill the old fool before the end of the school year, and I want you to make sure that he fulfils his task."

"As far as I know, my wife has already let Severus swear a wizard's oath that he would either make sure that Draco fulfils your order or kill Dumbledore by himself to please you, my Lord," Lucius Malfoy argued.

"I don't care; however, I want either Draco or Severus to kill the old fool as soon as possible," Voldemort hissed, before he used a curse to make sure Lucius Malfoy would remember what he was supposed to do.

"Now Lucius, tell me..."

Harry felt himself slowly drift away from his vision when he noticed that the after effects of the Cruciatus curse receded all of a sudden. '_I have to speak with Dumbledore and McGonagall_,' he thought, swinging his legs out of his bed without even bothering to open his eyes. Only when Madam Pomfrey's voice penetrated his ears, he blinked.

"Hello Madam Pomfrey," he said quickly. "I'm sorry, but I must urgently speak with Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall," he excused himself, growling when the Healer pushed him back onto his bed. "I feel much better now, and it's urgent," he pleaded desperately.

"No Harry, you're ill, and you won't go anywhere. You only feel better because your belly is full of potions, which I just spelled into your stomach. I'll fetch the Headmaster for you," she promised and hurried out of the room after gently tucking the boy in.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Five minutes later, Professor Dumbledore strode into the room with his Pensieve in his hands and Madam Pomfrey on his heels.

"Did you have a vision, Harry?" the Headmaster asked gently and seeing that Harry gave him a confirming nod asked him to put the memory into the Pensieve.

"Harry, would you mind Poppy watching the memory together with me?" Dumbledore enquired, and when Harry slightly shook his head the two adults entered the Pensieve.

Ten minutes later, they left the Pensieve, and Dumbledore sat down on the edge of Harry's bed. "I knew Harry, Professor Snape already spoke to me about the matter. Believe it or not, he is on our side, Harry."

"Then how can he swear a wizard's oath on such a thing?" Harry exploded. "There is only one solution, Professor; I have to finish him off before that."

Dumbledore sighed. "Harry, do you know what a Horcrux is?" he asked gravely.

Harry slightly shook his head.

"Well, to tell you in a very simple way, Voldemort split his soul into several parts, probably seven as far as I can imagine, hiding the parts of his soul in Horcuxes. He probably used one when you killed him the first time as a one-year-old, and you destroyed one when you destroyed the diary. We either must find the remaining four, or you'll have to kill him five times."

Harry groaned in exasperation. "All right, Professor. Let's think about a fool proof way to kill him and I'll try five times," he replied, trying to take the matter lightly. "Do you have an idea, what the power the Dark Lord knows not could be, sir?"

The Headmaster threw Harry a fond smile. "_Love_, Harry. Love is your power, which Voldemort doesn't know."

'_Love_,' Harry mused, before he spoke up again. "Professor, I have two ideas how to attack Voldemort; however, I'd need you and Professor McGonagall to help me."

"And what would that be, my boy?" Dumbledore asked gently.

"Well, one way would be to attack his mind when I'm pulled in a vision. However, I'd have to learn Legilimency. The other way would be to become a magical Animagus. There must be some kind of magical animal that is resistant to spells as which I could accompany Snape to a Death Eater meeting and finish him off."

"Five times?" Dumbledore enquired unbelievingly.

"Yes," Harry replied in determination.

The Headmaster remained pensive for a few minutes, before he replied thoughtfully, "Both are good ideas; however, I believe that the attack on his mind would be more efficient than on his body, knowing that it is his spirit, which you have to destroy five times, while there is only one body. Moreover, as our experience with Professor Quirrel has shown, he doesn't necessarily need a body to exist, but he needs his mind. I can teach you Legilimency, and perhaps we can try to enter his mind together through your scar. However, you have to learn to set up the connection from your side, and you can only do that when you're perfectly capable of not only Legilimency but also Occlumency."

"Can you teach me, Professor?" Harry asked, throwing the professor a pleading glance.

"Yes Harry, I will teach you as often as Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall allow me to do so," Dumbledore promised.

"Um... Professor, eh, today, I noticed something strange," Harry admitted in a small voice. "When I was pulled into the vision, I could see into Voldemort's mind. I saw memories, which I think belong to him. This has never happened before." He threw the professor an uncertain look.

"Maybe that's the doing of the potion you're taking at the moment, the potion that is meant to prevent brain damage, perhaps it could have such a side effect," Madam Pomfrey spoke up thoughtfully.

"I could just enter a few of his memories and comment on them using my love towards the people he killed to vanquish him. I don't know it it'll work though," Harry mused aloud. "But how can I open the connection from my side?"

Dumbledore sighed. "Harry, promise me that you won't do anything alone. I want to enter your mind when you try anything, and I even want Professor Snape to be with us as well."

"Snape?" Harry asked horrified. "He will only hurt me and prevent me from doing my job."

"Harry, he won't," Madam Pomfrey threw in. "I know him very well, and even if he sometimes is not the friendliest person around, he wouldn't willingly hurt you, and he is firmly on our side. However, Albus, whatever you do, please consider Harry's condition."

"We will do that, Poppy," the Headmaster replied resolutely. "Whenever we try something, I want you here as well anyway." He gave Harry a piercing look. "Harry, I'd like to continue this conversation in the evening together with Professors McGonagall and Snape. Would you be willing to speak with us, provided that you feel well enough?"

"Of course sir," Harry replied, inwardly groaning at the thought of having to endure Snape's presence once more on that day.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

In the evening, the meeting took place in Minerva's living room, where Harry was resting on the sofa.

"Are you sure that it were the Dark Lord's memories you saw, Potter?" Snape sneered.

"Yes sir," Harry replied.

"They must be, Severus," Dumbledore spoke up. "I saw them in the Pensieve and wondered what they were."

"Considering that love should be the power, which is supposed to help him defeat the Dark Lord, I could imagine casting the killing course on him through his mind. You know, Albus, that you can only cast the killing curse using extreme hate against the person you want to kill; however, the killing curse might also work if you use love instead of hate," the Potions Master mused thoughtfully.

"That could be an efficient way to finish him off," Dumbledore replied pensively. "What do you think, Minerva?"

"Is there no way that the killing curse can backfire and hit Harry instead?" McGonagall asked in extreme concern for the child that she was just beginning to think of as her own.

"No, because Albus and I will be there and put up a strong Protego in front of Potter's mind," Snape replied firmly.

"But is there a way that I can build up the connection from my side to attack him when I want?" Harry asked eagerly.

"May I try something out, Mr. Potter?" Snape enquired in a soft voice. "I won't hurt you, but I want to try if I can see the connection and if I'd be able to activate it for you."

"All right, but," Harry threw Madam Pomfrey a pleading glance, "could I have a headache potion first? I know that it'll hurt if Professor Snape enters my mind, and my head already hurts."

"Of course, Harry," Madam Pomfrey replied and spelled all his potions into Harry's stomach, causing the boy to sigh in relief.

"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey," he replied and turned to Snape. "I'm ready, Professor."

The Potions Master raised his wand, casting, "Legilimens," and entered Harry's mind, followed closely by the Headmaster.

* * *

HP

_Thanks to __yamiyugi23, JWOHPfan, and mmadjane __for their kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Snape and Dumbledore looked around Harry's mind. 'Here Albus,' the Potions professor suddenly pointed to a spot deep in the back of the boy's mind. 'I believe that's the connection.'

'I think you're right,' Dumbledore agreed. 'Whatever you do, Severus, don't forget to be very careful, so that Voldemort won't notice us.'

'I know that; stay behind and let me try something out,' Snape replied and carefully opened the connection into Tom's mind. He very carefully skimmed a few memories until he found the one about the evening in Godric's Hollow.

'Won't he see the same memories?' Harry enquired worriedly.

'Yes, but he doesn't know why they pop up, so he won't notice that something is wrong,' the Headmaster replied gently.

Seeing the memory of his parents being killed, Harry couldn't wait any longer. '_I know, they said it's only a test, but I'll just try it out_,' Harry mused, and before Snape or Dumbledore, who could of course hear his thoughts, could protest, Harry summoned all his magic and cast 'Avada Kedavra' in the direction of Tom's memories, thinking of how much he loved his parents, who had been killed by Tom.

The curse hit with full force and didn't only shatter Tom's mind into pieces but also backfired, and only the fast reaction of Snape, who managed to put a strong Protego charm in front of Harry right in time, could prevent the boy from being hit with the rebound curse.

Snape and Dumbledore pulled out of Harry's mind immediately, giving the boy a piercing look.

"What happened?" the two women asked in utmost concern seeing their colleague's stern expressions.

"Harry cast the killing curse at Tom, but it was so powerful that it backfired," Dumbledore explained quickly, seeing that Pomfrey was already checking on the child.

"His magic is completely exhausted and he is in a deep sleep," she finally announced. "I don't think that it did him any harm except for the depletion of his magic. He mustn't use any magic for a week."

"All right, thank God," Minerva replied in relief. She had been extremely concerned when she suddenly saw the child break down in what seemed to be an unconscious state.

Snape suddenly pulled up his left sleeve, seeing that the Dark Mark had faded to a light grey. "It's like it was all the time while the Dark Lord was gone," he sighed.

"However, it hasn't gone completely, which means that our theory with the Horcruxes is correct," the Headmaster added pensively. "We have to wait until Harry is recovered enough and then we can try if we'll be able to enter his mind again even if he is not in possession of a body. If that worked, we could just repeat the process another four times, provided that Tom was already able to make six Horcruxes, until the Dark Mark fades completely."

"All right, but you can't try anything out right now," Pomfrey told the men sternly. "The earliest you may try something is on the weekend, and I'll tell you, I want to be present whenever you make Harry repeat this."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

During the next three days, Harry had to remain at the Manor the whole day. Every morning when Minerva checked on him, his fever exceeded 39 degrees, and he didn't even feel well enough to get up let alone attend classes. While Minerva was at Hogwarts to teach her classes, Harry spent most of the time sleeping. Only when his guardian returned home, he dragged himself down the stairs into the living room. They always had dinner together, and afterwards Harry lay down on the sofa to rest, while Minerva spent the evening grading parchments and talking to Harry when he was awake.

On Friday morning, Harry's fever finally came down and the snake's tail flared yellow. "37.8 Harry; that's a great progress," Minerva said warmly. "Do you feel well enough to attend classes today?"

Harry frowned. "I'm sorry Professor, but could I have a look at my time table, before I decide? I feel better but I've a splitting headache, and I'd like to know if it's worth to get up."

Minerva smirked and handed him his bag, watching as Harry dug in it and finally produced his time table. "History of Magic, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Divination, and Potions," Harry read and groaned. "Professor, I don't think I feel well enough to attend classes today," he finally said in a small voice. "Defence is good of course, but I'm not allowed to do magic anyway."

"Harry, it's all right," Minerva reassured him in a calming voice. "You don't have to explain anything; you're ill and don't have to attend classes at all. You could even floo to Hogwarts just in time for Defence if you wanted to attend just that class; however, it doesn't make much sense as long as you're not allowed to do magic. Try to rest as much as you can, and if you feel well enough to read, you may have a look in the library; I'm sure that you'll find something of interest. I'll be back at lunchtime."

"Oh, that sounds interesting," Harry replied. "Professor, can you show me where the library is, please?"

Minerva gave him a confused look, before she remembered that she hadn't taken the boy to the library yet. "Oh, sorry Harry, I completely forgot," she apologized, motioning him to follow her.

The library was absolutely gorgeous. '_It's nearly as big as the Hogwarts library_,' Harry thought in total amazement and resolved spending the morning in the large room, which was very bright in spite of the hundreds of book shelves, because the ceiling was charmed like the Great Hall at Hogwarts.

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In the evening, Harry all of a sudden asked, "Professor, I'd like to floo to Hogwarts and ask Hermione if I can borrow her notes. You know I missed all my classes this week and I don't even know what I have to do for homework."

Minerva gave the boy a fond smile and replied, "Harry, I received all of your assignments from your teachers, and I have a copy of Ms. Granger's notes as well. However, so far your condition wasn't well enough to study at all; that's why I didn't give them to you yet." She stepped over into her office only to return a minute later with a pile of parchments, which she put on the table in front of Harry.

"Thanks a lot, Prof... eh, Minerva," Harry replied gratefully and engrossed himself in Hermione's notes.

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On Saturday evening, the teachers once more met in the living room of McGonagall Manor, and Professors Snape and Dumbledore entered Harry's mind to see if there was still a connection to Voldemort. "Tom probably only has his memories up to the time when he created the Horcrux, which he used this time; so don't look for certain memories," Dumbledore had warned Snape and Harry beforehand, and Harry could see that all the memories, which Snape selected, were memories of Tom's time at Hogwarts.

'Now!' he mentally shouted to Snape and Dumbledore in excitement when he witnessed a scene, in which Tom accused Hagrid of opening the Chamber of Secrets. Trying to summon as much magic as possible, he thought about Hagrid, who was the first friend he ever had, who rescued him from the Dursleys the first time, and who gave him his first birthday present. His mind full of love towards the half giant, Harry cast the killing curse, while his two teachers protected him with a strong Protego charm.

"Did that work?" he asked in confusion, turning to the two professors as soon as they had pulled out of his mind.

"Yes, his mind was shattered," the Potions Master replied, and Harry noticed astonished that his voice was lacking his usual sneer.

"So we have to repeat this another three times?" Harry enquired, receiving a confirming nod from the teachers. "Can we just have another go?"

"No!" Minerva beat all the others to an answer. "Harry, I don't want you to put yourself into danger. You certainly used a lot of magic to finish him off, and you should rest until Madam Pomfrey tells you that you may use so much magic again."

"He obviously didn't use so much magic this time," Poppy spoke up after thoroughly checking on Harry. "I believe that you could try again tomorrow."

On Sunday evening, Snape, Dumbledore, and Harry efficiently repeated the process once more. This time, Harry turned to Snape as soon as they found themselves back from Tom's shattered mind. 'Professor, let's just do it once more right away.'

'Are you sure, Potter?' Snape asked back, knowing that the spell had been strong enough but not overly strong, so that the boy, who was extremely powerful, should well be able to cast the curse once more.

Twenty minutes later, Harry lay back on the sofa and sighed in relief, muttering, "Only one more to go."

The professors quickly retreated from Harry's mind, letting themselves sink back into their chairs in exhaustion. "This time, it was somehow different," Snape mused aloud. "Potter, didn't it hurt this time? I was hit by an immense wave of pain."

"So was I," the Headmaster confirmed.

"Do you think he sensed something and did something to you?" Minerva asked alerted.

"I have no idea, Minerva," Dumbledore replied, giving Harry a piercing look, who was pressing a hand against his scar.

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HP

_Thanks a lot for your kind reviews! All right, I'll continue to update in the same pace. In fact, I've already finished writing the first twenty chapters, although I'm afraid my other stories have to wait for a moment – sorry… !  
I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!  
All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Harry gave the professor a confused glance. "Why Professors? Maybe my scar hurt a bit more the second time tonight than the other times, but other than that..." He stopped himself to look over to the Potions Master, who suddenly began to groan in agony.

Professor Snape all of a sudden gripped his left arm with an expression of utmost pain on his face, before he suddenly relaxed and in a rare display of excitement rolled his sleeve up to reveal the Dark Mark that faded into nothing. "I believe he is gone for good," he stated, glancing at Harry's forehead, from where drops of blood were dripping down. "Poppy, look, the boy," he hissed, causing the Healer to rush to Harry's side.

"Severus, I suggest that you return to Hogwarts and check on all of the Death Eater children," Dumbledore said sternly. "I'll go back to my office and inform the Ministry."

"No Albus; I believe that we should once more enter Potter's mind and search for the connection to be absolutely sure that he's gone," Snape objected, throwing Harry and the Healer a questioning glance.

"It's all right, if I can have a headache potion first," Harry replied in a small voice, groaning inwardly.

"I don't like it at all; so hurry up please, and be careful not to hurt Harry anymore," Poppy admonished the teacher sternly.

"I promise," Snape replied and once more cast the Legilimens spell, carefully trying not to aggravate the boy's condition even more. Ten minutes later, he pulled out of Harry's mind, a hardly seen small smile playing on his lips. "I cannot find the link anymore; it's gone," he announced, causing everyone present to sigh in relief.

While the two men hurried back to the school, Minerva, Harry, and Madam Pomfrey had tea together. "I still can't believe it," Harry suddenly spoke up. "Did I really fulfil the prophecy?"

"Yes, you did that very well, Harry," Minerva replied, smiling.

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When Minerva entered Harry's room in the morning, Harry was sitting at his desk doing his Transfiguration homework.

"Good morning, Harry," Minerva said surprised. "You're up very early."

"Good morning, Minerva. I'm feeling much better today, so I thought I could try to catch up with my homework."

"I'm glad to hear that you're feeling better, Harry. Would you mind going to Hogwarts in time for breakfast?"

"Of course not; we should eat at least breakfast if not also dinner at Hogwarts when I'm able to stay there," Harry replied, completely understanding that the professor had to attend the meals at Hogwarts as often as possible.

"All right Harry, let's quickly take your temperature, and then we should get ready," Minerva suggested, picking up the snake thermometer from Harry's night table.

Harry slowly stepped back to his bed and sat down, groaning. "Do you really have to take my temperature every morning? I'm fine; I don't have a fever today."

Minerva sighed, sitting down next to Harry. "I'm sorry, Harry, but that's Madam Pomfrey's order. Please either open your mouth," the teacher replied firmly, sticking the business end of the snake under Harry's tongue, noticing that Harry slightly shivered at the cold touch.

She softly felt Harry's forehead, before she put her right arm around the boy's shoulders and pulled him into a light embrace, causing him to tiredly rest his head on her shoulder. '_I'm not sure if he is well enough for classes_,' Minerva mused and pulled Harry's time table over with her free hand. "Potions, History of Magic, Transfiguration, Care of Magical Creatures, and Defence," she read. "Harry, are you well enough for all of that?"

Harry sat upright once more, wiping his eyes, before he gave his guardian an uncertain nod, watching from the corner of his eye how the snake's tail slowly moved up, before it stopped and flared yellow, displaying 37.3.

"That's much better," Minerva stated in relief. "However, I don't have the impression as if you were really feeling well." She gave Harry a questioning glance.

"I'm going to try at least; I'm just a bit uncertain about Potions," he admitted hesitantly, too aware of the fact that his new guardian, who was so understanding and easy to talk with, was his stern Head of House at the same time.

"Harry, if you feel too unwell, you don't have to go to school at all," Minerva said softly, handing him his potions. "If it is only because you're afraid of Professor Snape's treatment of you, you should show him that you're not afraid and attend the class, if you understand what I mean. If he wants you to drink any kind of potion, just leave the room and come to me or go to Madam Pomfrey. She will help you anytime just like me."

"All right, and yes, I think you're right, Minerva. I will attend all my classes, although I already know that Gryffindor will lose at least twenty points on my behalf, because I didn't do my Potions homework."

Minerva waved her wand in the direction of Harry's desk, summoning parchment and a quill, and wrote a message, '_Due to his illness, Mr. Potter was not able to do any of his homework. He is allowed to attend his classes today as long as he is feeling well enough. If he feels unwell, he may return home at any time. M. McGonagall._'

She copied the parchment four times and told the boy, "I will give this to your teachers at breakfast, Harry, and if anyone makes inappropriate comments or takes points, you'll tell me, all right?"

"All right," Harry smiled. "Thank you, Professor."

Twenty minutes later, Harry and Minerva took the Floo network to Minerva's office at Hogwarts. "Harry, don't forget to see Madam Pomfrey straight after lunch," Minerva reminded Harry on their way down to the Great Hall.

"All right," Harry replied, groaning inwardly. "Professor," he suddenly spoke up, only to continue when Minerva threw him a questioning glance, "thanks a lot for becoming my guardian and letting me stay with you. I've never had a real home until now, and I've never been so happy before."

"You're welcome, Harry," Minerva replied softly, giving the child a fond smile, before she opened the door to the Great Hall.

"Harry!" Hermione, Ron, and Ginny shouted when they saw Harry following their Head of House into the Great Hall.

"Good morning everyone, how are things?"

"I thought they'd never allow you to come back," Ron said when Harry sat down between Ron and Hermione.

"Well, in fact I would've been able to come last Friday, but looking at our time table I decided to just stay home," Harry admitted in a small voice, only for his best friends to hear.

"And McGonagall just allowed you to stay home?" Ron asked incredulously.

"Um, well, at home, she is my guardian more than my teacher," Harry replied thoughtfully. '_In fact, she is more like a parent_,' he mused, feeling extremely happy at the thought.

At this instant, Dumbledore rose from his seat to make an announcement.

"My dear students, today I have good news for all of you. You all know that Voldemort came back sixteen months ago and once more pulled our world into a war. This war was the war of all of us against the evil; however, it was especially the war of one wizard of our side against Voldemort, and today I wish to share information with you, which was so far kept a secret."

Seeing that everyone was listening intensely, he continued, "About a year before our Harry Potter was born, Professor Trelawney made a prophecy, which stated that Harry would have to either kill Voldemort by a power, which Voldemort wouldn't know, or be killed by him. For all our sake, Harry managed to fulfil this prophecy yesterday evening. Voldemort is gone for good this time."

"How do you know that he is really gone for good? Everyone already thought so when Harry defeated him as a baby," one of the Hufflepuff students asked.

Dumbledore sighed. "Well, I'll explain this in a very short form. Voldemort apparently found a way to divide his soul in six pieces and created so-called Horcruxes. Each of them was housing one part of his soul. Therefore, when he died the first time, he still had five souls left. One of the Horcruxes was destroyed three years ago. When he gained a new body sixteen months ago with one of his souls he had still three others in Horcruxes. Recently, Harry found a way to kill Voldemort by his real power, which is love. He managed to invade Voldemort's mind through the connection over his scar and threw the killing curse at him."

Ignoring the huge gasp that filled the Great Hall, Dumbledore explained, "Normally, it affords a huge amount of hatred to cast the killing curse; however, Harry managed to cast it with his love. As far as he told me afterwards, it was his love towards his parents, towards Professor Hagrid, who had been the one to introduce him to the magical world, and towards Professor McGonagall, who recently became his guardian and gave him his first real home. I don't remember what he used for the fourth time, but anyway, Harry managed to kill Voldemort four times, so that he is completely gone now. I have been told that the Death Eaters' Dark Marks have vanished completely."

At this time, the Great Hall erupted in applause, and Dumbledore continued, "I'd like to thank Harry very much, and at the same time, I'm happy to announce that we will be having a demise party here in the Great Hall tomorrow night. The Minister of Magic will be present and award Harry the Order of Merlin first class, and there will also be a press conference. Additionally, I believe that this happy event warrants for special arrangements, and I have cancelled all classes for the whole week. Please enjoy this week together with your friends!"

With that, the Headmaster sat down, and everyone began to speak at the same time. However, the Hall quieted down when Harry suddenly stood on a chair in order to gain everyone's attention.

"Dear fellow students, dear teachers," he addressed everyone present; "I'd like to tell you that the information, which the Headmaster gave you, is not exactly true. I'm sorry, Professor Dumbledore."

With that, the Great Hall turned completely silent.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Ignoring the incredulous looks everyone gave him, Harry continued, "It is true that I threw the curse at Tom, and yes, I did that four times. However, I would have never been able to even establish the connection to Voldemort, if Professor Snape hadn't helped me. He entered my mind and provided the connection for me four times, he searched in Tom's mind for the memories, which I needed to develop a sufficient amount of love to defeat him, and last not least he saved my life when the spell backfired the first time. Therefore, it's not true that I defeated Voldemort. Professor Snape and I vanquished him together."

With that, Harry turned to Dumbledore. "Headmaster, I can tell you now that I will not accept any award, if Professor Snape won't receive exactly the same, and I will give my information to the Daily Prophet and all the other newspapers, even if I'm not able to attend the press conference."

When Harry stepped down from his seat and sat down, everyone began to speak at the same time.

"Why didn't you tell us anything, mate?" Ron asked incredulously.

"Oh Ron, that happened yesterday evening; when should Harry have told us?" Hermione admonished him quickly. "Well done, Harry; congratulations."

"I meant about the prophecy," Ron insisted. "We're your best friends, aren't we?"

Harry sighed. "Yes Ron, but when should I've told you? Professor Dumbledore only informed me about the matter after Sirius died. I didn't have a chance to speak to you, and since we returned here after the holidays, I was sick all the time. I'm just glad that it's over."

"Congratulations Harry," Ginny said softly from the other side of the table, giving Harry a fond smile.

"Thank you Ginny," Harry replied, happily smiling back. '_Maybe I could ask Ginny out now_,' he mused, extremely relieved to be free from the burden that had hung over him since the Headmaster had told him about the prophecy.

"So we won't have classes for a whole week," Hermione stated. "Harry, will you be allowed to stay here during the day even if we don't have classes?"

"I must ask McGonagall," Harry replied, suddenly feeling uncertain. "I have a lot to catch up from last week anyway, so I'm glad that we don't have classes."

"I'll help you," Hermione promised. "We can ask Professor McGonagall if you may stay here, so that we can study together in the common room or in the library."

When breakfast was finished, Hermione accompanied Harry to the Head table. "Professor, may I stay here even if there are no classes?" Harry asked, giving Minerva a pleading look.

"I'd like to help him catch up with his school work that he missed last week," Hermione added softly. "We'd study either in the common room or in the library."

Minerva gave Harry a piercing look. "Harry, if you feel well enough you may. Don't forget to attend lunch, and don't forget to see Madam Pomfrey after lunch." She unobtrusively waved her wand, throwing a Silencing spell around the three of them. "Harry, your announcement concerning Professor Snape was absolutely brilliant, especially considering how he behaved towards you in your last Potions class. Fifty points to Gryffindor."

Harry blushed deeply. "Thank you, Professor. In fact, I'm a bit disappointed in Professor Dumbledore."

"Well, he will certainly have had his reasons, but I believe that you did the right thing, Harry," Minerva said softly and cancelled the Silencing spell, before they left the Great Hall together.

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In the Gryffindor common room, a loud party was on its way. Someone had obviously alerted the house elves, who had prepared a huge feast with lots of delicacies and butterbeer in the common room.

"Harry, I don't think you should drink butterbeer," Hermione said worriedly, prying the glass off his hands.

"Why not?" Harry asked absentmindedly.

"Because it might interact with your potions; you have to ask Madam Pomfrey or at least Professor McGonagall if you can drink any," Katie told him. "By the way, Harry, you're the Quidditch captain, aren't you?"

"I'm what?" Harry asked in disbelief. "As far as I know I'm still banned from Quidditch."

"No, you're not," Katie replied, "and Professor McGonagall told us that you're the captain."

"I don't even have my broom; moreover, I'm not allowed to be at Hogwarts in the evening; when should we practise? I could only offer the team to practise on Saturdays or Sundays, provided that I'm allowed to come. I will speak with Professor McGonagall tonight and ask her to make you captain for this year if that's all right with you."

"No, I don't think so; but we can do it together. If you're not here, I will lead the practice, but when you're here, you're the captain."

"All right," Harry agreed. "Do you think everyone will agree to have Quidditch practice on Saturday and Sunday morning?"

"They will agree, and I can offer one additional practice for example on Wednesday nights. I'll go to Madam Hooch and ask when we can have the Quidditch pitch," Katie offered, and Harry agreed gratefully.

"Harry, I asked Professor McGonagall, and she said you shouldn't drink any butterbeer or other alcoholic drinks," Hermione informed him, while Katie left the room.

Twenty minutes later, Katie was back and told him that she had reserved the Quidditch pitch. She quickly wrote the times on a parchment, which Hermione took and put it on the wall with a sticking spell.

"Thank you Katie, Hermione," Harry sighed, noticing that the noise in the common room aggravated his headache. "Do you think we could go to the library?" he asked in a small voice, glad when Hermione agreed immediately. Ron on the contrary insisted to remain at the party.

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"Harry, where shall we start?" Hermione asked, pulling her notes out of her pocket.

"I don't know; we should do the most important subjects first though," Harry replied pensively. "Maybe Charms and Potions; Defence shouldn't be too difficult, and for Transfiguration I can even ask my guardian."

During the next two hours, the two Gryffindors busied themselves with Hermione's Charms notes from the week before. Finally, Harry put his quill away and said, "Thanks Hermione. I'm sorry, but I can't study any more at the moment. I need a break."

His friend threw him a concerned glance, before she replied, "It's nearly lunchtime anyway. Shall we head to the Great Hall right away?"

"I'd like to get some fresh air if you don't mind," Harry replied tiredly. "I'd love to spend a few minutes near the lake.

"Are you going to attend the demise party tomorrow, Harry?"

Harry sighed. "I don't know. As I said I will only take this award if they give Snape one too. Moreover, I'm only allowed to spend less than twelve hours a day at Hogwarts, so that I can spend the majority of the day in the Muggle world."

"Is McGonagall Manor a real Muggle building?" Hermione enquired incredulously. "I mean, do you use normal electricity and everything, which is missing in magical homes?"

"We have both, but it's built in a complete Muggle surrounding and I can't feel the magic all around me like I feel it at Hogwarts," Harry tried to explain, while he was rubbing his forehead and his eyes.

"Are you feeling all right?" Hermione asked and quickly laid a hand on his forehead. "You're not," she stated. "Let's head into the Great Hall. After lunch, you have to go to see Madam Pomfrey anyway, don't you?" Seeing that Harry nodded, she promised, "I'll accompany you."

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As soon as they entered the Great Hall, Harry noticed that Minister Scrimgeour was sitting next to the Headmaster at the Head table. When everyone was seated, the Minister stood up.

"Dear students, dear teachers, I just came here to congratulate you to the demise of You-Know-Who. You can be very proud since it was one of you, who managed to vanquish the evil last night. Tomorrow evening, we are going to hold a demise party here in your beautiful Great Hall together with many guests from the international magical world. At this opportunity, I will award the Order of Merlin first class to one of your fellow students, Harry Potter."

With that, Harry stood up and interrupted the Minister. "Dear Minister, thanks for coming. As I already told Professor Dumbledore this morning, I am not going to accept the Order of Merlin due to the fact that it was not me, who vanquished Voldemort. Professor Snape and I vanquished him together, and I wouldn't have been able to achieve that on my own. I'm not going to participate in any demise party or press conference, if Professor Snape won't receive the same award too, and I will see to it that the wizarding world is going to know the truth."

The Minister came over to Harry and said in a small voice, "Mr. Potter, you must understand, Professor Snape was a Death Eater, and we can't..."

As loudly as before, Harry replied, "No, I'm sorry, but I do not understand. Professor Snape was not a Death Eater, he always fought for the side of the light, and it's either both of us or none of us. And now please excuse me; I have an appointment with Madam Pomfrey. If you change your mind, you can contact me through Professor McGonagall." With that, Harry left the room under huge applause from the entire student body.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"You were brilliant," Hermione told Harry, when she caught up with him and accompanied him to the hospital wing. "That's why everyone applauded even if they don't like Professor Snape at all."

Harry threw his friend a grateful smile and entered the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey came out of her office, throwing the two students an unbelieving look. "Have you already finished eating or is something wrong? You're very early."

Hermione quickly explained to the Healer what had happened, while Harry tiredly lay down on a bed, sighing in relief when his head hit the pillow. "How are you feeling, Harry?" the Healer asked, while she waved her wand at the boy.

"Tired and achy," Harry replied, rubbing his forehead.

"I believe that; you're running a slight fever again. I suggest that you remain here and take a nap, and we'll see how you are afterwards. Either you can stay in the castle until dinner, or I'm going to take you back home." Pomfrey quickly spelled two potions in Harry's stomach and motioned Hermione to leave. "You may come back in two hours; by then I will know if he can stay for a few more hours."

When Harry woke up, Hermione was sitting on the edge of his bed reading a book. "Hello sleepy head," she said smiling.

"Hi Hermione; sorry, how late is it?" he asked confused.

"It's nearly dinnertime. Madam Pomfrey said you may stay here until dinner, and after dinner you have to floo home."

"All right," Harry replied, yawning. "What are we going to do?"

"Shall we go for a walk around the lake, or do you want to study?" Hermione asked gently.

"Let's go for a walk. I'm not in the mood for a party; my head still hurts," Harry mumbled, lazily scrambling out of bed.

The two sixth years slowly walked around the lake, noticing that it was slowly getting cold outside. "What's wrong with Ron?" Harry asked hesitantly. "Is he ignoring me, or is it just because of the party in the common room?"

Hermione sighed. "Well, he's a bit difficult at the moment. And you know, you gave him a reason to be jealous of you... again. Don't worry, Harry, he'll come around. How are you getting along with Professor McGonagall? Is she as strict at home as she is here?"

"Frankly speaking I don't know. I more or less have been ill the whole time and was asleep most of the time. If I wasn't asleep, I was resting on the sofa talking to her, while she was grading parchments. The only thing that I noticed is that it's easy to speak with her about anything, and that she behaves like a parent, well at least like I imagine a parent would behave."

"That's brilliant, Harry. I'm really happy for you," his friend told him, giving him a true smile.

"Hermione, do you think Dumbledore and Scrimgeour will give in?" Harry asked suddenly. "I'm considering writing a letter to Luna's father, which he can read to the other journalists during the press conference or just copy for them."

"That's a great idea, Harry. Shall I help you write that letter?" Hermione offered gently, pulling parchment and a quill out of her robe pocket.

Harry quickly dictated the letter to her, and twenty minutes later, the letter containing of three parchments written in Hermione's neat writing was ready.

"Come on, Harry, we'll just manage to give it to Hedwig before dinnertime," Hermione stated, pulling Harry with her to the owlery. "I think your letter will be in good hands with Luna's father."

"Now that that is taken care of, I'm considering skipping the demise party," Harry said thoughtfully. "If I'm well enough, I could come here in the morning, and then I have to go home straight after dinner. If I'm not well enough in the morning, I'll just stay at home the whole day."

"That's a good idea, although I preferred having you here," Hermione replied softly. "Do you think Professor McGonagall would allow me to visit you in order to help you catch up?"

"I don't know, but I'll ask her later on," Harry promised when they entered the Great Hall.

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After dinner, Minerva motioned Harry to accompany her and led him to her office, from where they took the Floo home immediately. They sat in the living room speaking about the events of the last twenty-four hours, before suddenly the fireplace in Minerva's office announced Madam Pomfrey and the Headmaster.

"May I go to bed until Dumbledore returns to Hogwarts? I don't want to meet him," Harry asked quickly, jumping up from the sofa.

"Go ahead," Minerva agreed and refrained from diverting the Floo to the living room. "I'll call you when he leaves," she promised while Harry hurried up the stairs and went to bed. He quickly changed into his pyjamas, afraid that the Headmaster would be able to sense his magic if he did it the magical way.

"I have to speak with Harry," he could hear the Headmaster's voice from downstairs.

"I'm sorry Albus, but Harry is ill. He was feeling unwell when he returned from school, and I sent him to bed," Minerva replied sternly.

"He even had to spend most of the afternoon in the hospital wing," Madam Pomfrey threw in, "and I will not allow you to wake the boy up. He really needs his rest."

"Well, I have to warn him. He cannot run around and tell everyone that Severus and he killed Voldemort together."

"Why not? It's the truth!" Minerva replied simply, and even if Harry couldn't hear Poppy nod her agreement, he knew that Poppy had to be showing her agreement somehow.

"Why not? Because Severus was a Death Eater at a time, and because they probably wouldn't award him the Order of Merlin first class, so maybe Harry and he would only receive the Order of Merlin second or even third class. However, Harry has earned the first class, and I want him to receive the award."

Harry could hear the two women snort, while he shook his head in annoyance. '_Maybe the Headmaster is getting too old_,' he thought, feeling absolutely exasperated.

"Then let me tell you, Albus, that Harry wouldn't care at all. He wouldn't mind getting a minor award, but he wants Severus to receive the same, even if he knows that Severus dislikes him. Apart from that, you won't be able to keep the matter a secret anymore. Harry wrote a long letter to Mr. Lovegood, the editor of the Quibbler. He has already published interviews with Harry before with enormous success," Minerva informed the headmaster in a stern voice.

"Oh no!" Dumbledore groaned, realizing that he had lost in this case. "Well, then I'll have to go and inform the Minister accordingly. Minerva, I need Harry to be present for the demise party and the press conference. Please don't let him go to the school too early tomorrow. I don't mind you staying here with him, considering that there are no classes tomorrow."

"Harry may only go to school, if he is well enough, Albus," Madam Pomfrey replied sternly, "and that is my decision. I do not care about all these events, and I'll only let him go if his condition allows it."

Harry could hear the Headmaster sigh, before the fireplace flared. A minute later, Minerva entered his room. "Professor Dumbledore is gone, Harry. Do you feel well enough to come downstairs once more?"

"Yes of course, but are you sure that I won't be in your way?" Harry replied, knowing that Madam Pomfrey was still visiting with Minerva.

"Of course not, Harry," Minerva told him, gently putting an arm around his shoulders.

"I'd like to know," Minerva spoke up when Harry was back on the sofa and she took a seat next to him, "what Severus thinks about the matter. Will he attend the demise party and the press conference? Will he agree with Harry and admit that he helped him, that they vanquished him together?"

"You could ask him; I'd like to hear his opinion too," Harry replied, smirking. "Well, frankly speaking, I'd prefer to remain here tomorrow instead of going to the school at all."

"If you're sure about that, you may of course remain here," Minerva told him in a soft voice.

"Of course," Madam Pomfrey agreed. "We don't even have to lie if we tell them that you're ill. Considering your poor health condition, it would certainly be better for you to stay here tomorrow."

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In the morning, Harry wasn't feeling too bad, and if it wasn't for the evening's events at school, he would have gone to Hogwarts in the morning. However, he remained at home, and Minerva used her free time to teach Harry everything that he had missed in his Transfiguration classes since the beginning of the school year. By the time Minerva had to leave for Hogwarts in order to arrive an hour before dinner, they had covered everything that the sixth years were going to learn in their Transfiguration classes until Christmas.

"So you don't have to be sad if you cannot attend Transfiguration class during the next few weeks," Minerva smirked, admiring how fast Harry was able to learn. "If you encounter any problems tonight, please tell Rose or Rory to fetch me; I'll be here within minutes. Madam Pomfrey is going to floo here to check on you and give you your potions during the early evening. Don't wait for me; I'll have to stay until the end, so it will be quite late."

"All right, Minerva, good night," Harry replied, heading up to his own room.

Only an hour later, Harry heard the fireplace downstairs flare, and minutes later, Madam Pomfrey stepped into his room. The Healer checked on him and made him take his medicine, before she sat down on the edge of his bed and gently tucked him in. "Harry, what you did towards Professor Snape was very noble, especially considering his behaviour towards you," she told him softly, carefully smothering his bed covers.

"Ah, it's nothing," Harry replied, feeling slightly annoyed. "Has Snape received the award?" he asked, suddenly remembering what he wanted to know.

"I don't know, Harry," the Mediwitch replied gravely. "By the time I had to leave, he hadn't shown up yet."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Even after Madam Pomfrey had left, Harry couldn't sleep. His thoughts were at Hogwarts, and he couldn't help turning the questions if Snape had shown up and what was told at the press conference around in his mind endlessly.

Suddenly, he heard the fireplace flare again and quickly took his wand in his hand, knowing that nobody was supposed to come over at that time of the evening, when all of a sudden the Potions Master strode into his room.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

"Good evening, Mr. Potter," Snape greeted him and handed him a huge package.

"Professor Snape," Harry replied astonished, feeling glad when he saw Minerva stand in the door frame. He hesitantly took the package, finding a huge medal with the inscription '_Order of Merlin, first class_' as well as several newspapers and a huge pile of gift cards inside. "What..." Harry threw the Potions Professor a confused look.

"Due to your meddling, Mr. Potter, I had to endure an annoying ceremony, during which you managed to attract attention by your absence."

"I couldn't go, because I was told to stay in bed," Harry interrupted the teacher in a small voice.

"Well, anyway, I felt myself being instructed to bring you these items from your fans," the teacher sneered.

"Wait! Did you receive the Order as well?" Harry suddenly asked sharply. "Otherwise, I won't take mine, and the meddling Headmaster knows this very well."

"So you want me to take it back and tell the Minister that you won't accept it?" Snape asked in surprise.

"Yes sir," Harry replied firmly, handing the teacher the medal back, not noticing that his guardian was watching their interaction with obvious amusement.

"As I said," Snape returned to his sneer, "due to your blatant meddling, I felt myself forced to receive the same award; well, I'm probably supposed to be grateful for your nosy interfering." With that, he handed Harry the medal back and showed him a similar one, which he pulled out of his robe pocket. "Now, I'll leave you to your fan post and your newspapers; you merely have to look at the front page of course," he added, raising an eyebrow at the boy, before he left the room.

"What was that?" Harry mused aloud, looking at Minerva in confusion.

Minerva laughed. "That was Professor Snape's way to thank you, Harry." She pulled one of the newspapers out of the package. "Mr. Lovegood obviously sold your letter to all the other newspapers yesterday evening, so that all the newspapers already published your information this morning. Dobby is collecting all your mail at Hogwarts since it wouldn't do good to have hundreds of owls come here, considering that we're living in a Muggle neighbourhood. The cards in the package are all from your Hogwarts friends I suppose. I know that many letters arrived from outside the castle, but the elves are still checking them for spells."

"I don't mind," Harry groaned, placing the package on his night table. "I'll look at everything in the morning."

"Are you feeling all right, Harry?" Minerva asked in concern.

"Apart from a terrible headache yes," Harry replied and lay down.

Minerva stepped over to his bedside and worriedly felt his forehead, before she placed a cold cloth on his forehead. "I'm sorry, Harry, but I must leave, because I have to attend the press conference in twenty minutes. Shall I ask Poppy to look after you?"

"No thanks, I'm all right; I'll try to get some sleep," Harry replied, lazily closing his eyes.

HP MINERVA'S POV HP

In the morning, Harry was still asleep when Minerva got up. '_He really seems to need much sleep_,' she mused, resolving to ask Poppy if that was a normal effect of his illness, while she spelled his pyjama top down and stuck the snake under his armpit, sighing when Harry shivered at the cold touch and tiredly opened his eyes.

"Good morning sweetie, how is your headache?" she asked softly, frowning when Harry sighed before he merely answered, "Okay."

All of a sudden, Harry struggled to sit up and asked, "Can I get my headache potion, please?"

"Harry, be careful, I'm just taking your temperature under your armpit," Minerva replied and quickly adjusted the thermometer once more, before she gave him a spoon full of his headache potion, watching as he sighed in relief.

"I suspect that you don't want to go to school today," Minerva stated softly, throwing Harry a questioning look.

"I don't know. I feel incredibly tired," Harry admitted, giving his guardian a helpless look from slightly glassy eyes. "May I go if I want to?" he asked tiredly.

"I don't think so," Minerva replied, impatiently glancing at the snake's tail that finally stopped moving. "No, you have a slight fever today, Harry." She sighed and remained thoughtful while she put the snake away. "Shall I ask Ms Granger to come over and keep you company for a few hours?"

"Won't you mind, Minerva? It's already bad enough that I'm invading your privacy here," Harry replied in a small voice.

Minerva sighed. "Harry, since I am your guardian, you're close to a son to me. You are living here now just like I do and this is your home as well as mine. Why would I mind inviting your best friend for a few hours, moreover while I am away at school? You just have to tell me if you want her to come or if you feel too sick for a visitor."

"I would like it," Harry replied, before he obediently swallowed the fever reducing potion.

Thirty minutes later, Harry was asleep on the sofa in the living room, while Minerva stepped into the fireplace heading to the school for a few hours. She hurried down to the Great Hall looking for Hermione.

"Ms. Granger, may I speak to you for a moment in my office after breakfast?" she asked the girl, who gave her a worried look in return.

"Of course, Professor."

With that, Minerva returned to her office since she had already eaten breakfast together with Harry. She was not surprised when Hermione showed up mere three minutes later.

"Hello Professor. Is something wrong with Harry?" the girl asked in obvious concern.

"He has a slight fever, a bit too high to let him go to school, and he is suffering from a bad headache. However, I wanted to ask you if you'd like to visit with Harry. You won't be able to do much school work though."

"Of course, Professor, if you don't mind," Hermione replied eagerly.

Minerva threw the girl a grateful look and floo-ed home after instructing Hermione to follow her in a minute. Seeing that Harry was still asleep, she called Rose and Rory and introduced them to Hermione, before she ordered Rose to make Hermione and Harry eat lunch later on.

"Rose will make Master Harry and his friend Hermione eat lunch, Mistress Minerva," the elf promised.

"Does Harry need any potions or anything when he wakes up?" Hermione asked concerned.

"You could check his temperature and if it exceeds 38 degrees, give him a spoon full each of the fever reducer and the headache potion," Minerva explained, causing Rose to fetch the phials and the thermometer and place everything on the table next to the sofa. "If you want to return to Hogwarts, just use the fireplace and floo to my office at Hogwarts. Otherwise, I'll be back in time for dinner and we can have dinner here together." With that, Minerva returned to the school.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

When Harry woke up, Hermione was sitting on the edge of the sofa, reading a book. "Mione," he said sleepily, looking up into her warm brown eyes.

"Hi Harry, how are you feeling?" Hermione asked softly, gently bathing his flushed cheeks with the cool cloth.

"I'm fine," Harry answered, bringing himself into a sitting position. "You should have woken me up, Hermione; I didn't know that you were here."

"That's all right, Harry; I was reading the Potions book, which I had to read anyway, and Professor McGonagall told me to let you sleep. She seemed very concerned about you."

Harry laughed. "Recently, she seems to resemble Mrs. Weasley a lot. She behaves like a mother hen."

Hermione gave him a stern look. "Maybe she tries to be a mother to you, Harry. You should be grateful to have such a nice guardian now."

Harry gave her a tired smile. "Believe me, Hermione, I appreciate it very much, and I'm very happy."

The two friends talked animatedly, not noticing how the time passed. Suddenly, Minerva entered the room, throwing Harry a concerned glance. She called Rose. "Could you please bring dinner for the three of us, Rose?"

"Of course, Mistress Minerva, dinner is already ready," the small elf replied, before dinner popped up on the table within minutes.

Minerva motioned Hermione to help herself and spooned a bit of everything on Harry's plate.

"Minerva, may I have a headache potion first?" Harry asked hesitantly, causing Minerva to look at him in concern.

The teacher turned to Hermione. "Did you give him a headache potion in the afternoon?"

"Yes, Professor, both potions, because he still had a fever," Hermione explained.

"Didn't the headache potion help, Harry?" Minerva enquired worriedly.

Harry sighed. "A bit, yes, but my headache is too bad today. May I have another dose of it?"

"Harry, I don't think that you can take it so often. Please begin to eat; I'll ask Poppy." She stepped over to the fireplace and called her friend.

"Well, Minerva, I told you before that this illness takes its course in waves. There will be times when he feels better like during the last few days, and there will be times when he is worse. I'll be over in half an hour, and I'll bring a stronger headache potion with me," Pomfrey promised.

When the Healer came to look after Harry, she spelled all his potions into his stomach as well as an additional sleeping potion that made Harry fall asleep instantly.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Fortunately, during the next three days, Harry felt much better and his fever had come down, so that he was allowed to spend the days at Hogwarts. When he entered the Great Hall on Wednesday morning, he was greeted by a huge wave of applause, causing Harry to hide behind Minerva. "I think I'm going back home," he groaned, causing the teacher to laugh.

"You'll survive it, Harry," she chuckled, before she took course of the Head table.

Seeing that their Quidditch captain was there the Quidditch team gathered straight after breakfast and cornered Harry. "Let's have Quidditch practice," Katie suggested, causing Harry to give her a thoughtful look.

"That's actually a good idea, but I don't have my broom. I have to ask Professor McGonagall."

Thirty minutes later, the Gryffindor Quidditch team was having its first Quidditch practice of the school year. Harry enjoyed himself very much, and when they finished their practice he announced two more practices for Thursday and Friday morning. "In case I'm not able to come, Katie will act as my co-captain," he told his team, "and this will be the case in every practice from now on until the end of the school year."

After lunch, Harry was always forced to take a nap in the hospital wing, before he could spend the afternoon with Hermione studying or walking around the lake. During these days, Harry noticed something strange. Whenever he woke up from his nap and Hermione was sitting on the edge of his bed watching him in concern with her warm brown eyes, he became extremely excited and had the impression that his temperature climbed up at least a degree. '_What is she doing to me?_' he asked himself in utter confusion but always dismissed the thought as soon as Hermione raised her soft voice to ask how he felt.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! This time, I expect many kind reviews considering the fact that I finished the chapter without a cliffy! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Harry and Hermione were just doing homework together in the common room on Friday afternoon, when Minerva stepped through the portrait hole, obviously looking for Harry. Harry quickly excused himself and hurried to his guardian. "Are you looking for me, Professor?" he enquired, giving the teacher a concerned look, when she threw a Silencing spell around them.

"Harry, I just wanted to tell you that I'm going home early. You may stay here and come home right after dinner. The password to my office is 'ginger frog'."

"Are you ill, Professor?" Harry asked in concern, noticing that Minerva's eyes were glazed over and her cheeks seemed flushed.

"I'm just feeling a bit under the weather. I've already taken Pepper-up potion, and I'd like to lie down before it gets bad," Minerva replied softly, causing Harry to frown.

"I'm going home with you. Let me just get my bag," he replied and quickly excused himself with Hermione, before he followed the teacher back home.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Back at McGonagall Manor, Minerva lay down on the sofa, apologizing to Harry, who normally used to rest on the sofa when they returned from the school.

"It's all right," Harry replied and sat down on the edge of the sofa like Minerva always did when he was feeling unwell. He carefully put his hand on her forehead and frowned. "Your skin is even warmer than my hands. I'm going to get our favourite snake and take your temperature, all right?"

Minerva let out a sigh. "If you must," she conceded.

Harry ran up to his room and fetched the snake thermometer, carefully sticking it under Minerva's tongue. While they were waiting for the reading, he conjured a cool cloth and gently wiped the teacher's slightly flushed face, before he adjusted it to her forehead, receiving a grateful smile from her glassy eyes. Too concerned to find it amusing, he watched the snake's tail stop its movement and slowly go up until stopped and flared orange, displaying the numbers 38.2.

"Shall I call Madam Pomfrey?" he asked cautiously.

"No, please don't. She'd only make a fuss about me; you know how she is," Minerva replied, her voice getting hoarse.

"Is there anything I can do for you, Minerva?" Harry asked worriedly.

"Perhaps ask the elves for some water and tissues. Thank you Harry for coming home with me; it feels good not to be alone," she added in a small voice.

"You stay with me whenever you can, don't you? I know that it feels good to have someone, who cares," Harry said softly, gently stroking her warm hand, before he called Rose and asked for the requested items.

Harry carefully helped Minerva to sit up and let her take small sips from the glass, receiving a grateful smile as the cool liquid soothingly ran through her burning throat. During the next few hours Minerva was busy sneezing and coughing, and Harry remained on the edge of the sofa, trying to make his guardian feel better like she always did for him.

At dinnertime, Harry tried to convince his patient to eat some chicken broth, and Minerva grudgingly obeyed, knowing that she had to give the boy, who had already become like a son to her, a good example, because he always had to eat even if his condition was as bad as hers was at the moment.

"All right, I think that's enough," Harry commended her, when she put her spoon down after eating half of the soup, and pushed his own plate away too. "Shall I help you up into your bedroom?" he asked softly, seeing that she seemed to be getting tired.

"Yes please, Harry, if you don't mind," Minerva answered gratefully, before she slowly stood up, heavily leaning onto Harry's arm.

Harry slowly helped her into her bedroom and into bed, before he waved his wand to exchange her clothing with her pyjamas using a spell, which Hermione had shown him during the last days.

"Thanks," Minerva croaked in relief. "I think I need another dose of Pepper-up potion. Could you get one for me from the potions shelf in the bathroom please?"

Harry quickly took her temperature, noticing worriedly that it was higher than before, before he handed her the potion. Minerva gratefully gulped it down and lay down, sighing in relief when her head made contact to the pillow. "Harry, please take your own temperature right now," she instructed the boy sternly, before she sent him to bed immediately, seeing that his fever was nearly as high as her own.

Harry was just drifting off to sleep when Madam Pomfrey entered his room. "I'm sorry for coming so late; I had many patients tonight."

"I'm fine, but Minerva is ill. Can you look after her, please?" Harry pleaded.

Seeing how concerned the boy was, the Mediwitch went to check on her friend first only to return to Harry's side a few minutes later. "Minerva has bronchitis," she sighed. "I put two phials on her night table, and she needs a spoon full of each every four hours. You don't have to get up during the night, but please begin as soon as you wake up in the morning. I also want you to take her temperature each time before you give her the potions, provided that you feel well enough to look after her?" She threw Harry a questioning look. "Otherwise I'm going to take her with me to the hospital wing."

"No, it's all right; of course I will look after her," Harry replied, frowning when the Healer held out a potion for him.

"This should prevent you from getting bronchitis as well, although I'm not sure if it'll work in combination with your brain potion. Try to sleep as much as you can; you can ask Rose to wake you up in time to check on Minerva. I'll come again in the morning and check on both of you. Don't worry; Minerva should be back to normal by tomorrow night."

As soon as the Healer was gone, Harry called Rose and asked her to wake him up at midnight, so that he could check on Minerva. When the elf complied four hours later, he gently roused Minerva and took her temperature. '_39.9; that's getting really high now_,' Harry thought, carefully feeding Minerva one spoon full of each of the potions, before he refreshed the cool cloth and readjusted it to her forehead.

"Are you all right?" Minerva asked hoarsely.

"I'm fine," Harry replied, softly stroking her hand, which still felt hot to the touch. "Go back to sleep, Minerva; I'll check on you again in four hours."

After instructing Rose to wake him again in four hours, he sat down in a comfortable looking chair, drifting off to sleep within seconds. When he checked on Minerva the next time, her fever was exceeding forty degrees and Harry was too concerned to go back to sleep but stayed on the edge of her bed, continuously bathing her hot face. In the morning, her fever finally broke and Harry went back to sit in his chair in relief, shoving the thought that he had to use the snake on himself too in the back of his mind.

He quickly took a spoon full of each of his potions except for the eye drops. So far, Minerva had always put his eye drops in for him since Harry was obviously too stupid to place the drops properly in his eyes. Harry tried a few times and finally gave up in annoyance. '_Well, it won't matter if I leave them out once_,' he thought and leaned back in his chair to sleep for a few hours that went by so fast that Harry had the impression he had just fallen asleep when Rose woke him up. He had been so fast asleep that he didn't even notice that Madam Pomfrey came by and checked on both of them.

"How are you feeling?" he asked gently, carefully feeling Minerva's forehead.

"Horrible," Minerva croaked, glancing at Harry from her half open glassy eyes.

"I believe that; you're very ill," Harry replied softly and proceeded to take her temperature. He carefully bathed her flushed face with the cool cloth, before he adjusted it to her forehead. "Your fever is already a bit lower than during the night, and by tomorrow you'll be much better," he said soothingly, noticing that Minerva tried to give him a grateful look.

"Minerva, I need you to eat something. Would you like some soup?"

"No, nothing," his patient replied hoarsely.

Harry frowned. "All right, for now I'll let you get away like this, but it's already lunchtime and you haven't eaten anything yet. Tonight you have to eat something," he relented, before he helped Minerva to sit up and take her potions, noticing that she sighed in relief when the potions kicked in and she drifted off to sleep.

Harry spent the whole day asleep in the chair. He only got up to look after Minerva every four hours. In the evening, she only had a slight fever and felt much better. Harry on the contrary didn't feel well at all and obeyed immediately when Minerva sent him to bed, knowing that Madam Pomfrey would come to look after them during the evening.

A few minutes later, the Healer's voice penetrated Harry's ear. "Harry, can you open your eyes for me, please?"

Harry obeyed, shivering violently when Pomfrey's cool hands touched his face. She lit the tip of her wand and peered into his eyes, his mouth, and even his ears, frowning when she finally put her wand away and went back to Minerva.

"His illness seems to have hit a bad wave. His fever is exceeding forty degrees; therefore, he needs absolute bed rest until it comes down. As long as it is so high, he needs a spoon full of the fever reducer every four hours except for the night. I'll come and check on him before I go to bed. Tomorrow you may look after him but other than that you're still not allowed to get up, Minerva, and you need to take your potions three times a day until you're completely well. I'll be back in the morning. I will inform the Headmaster that none of you is able to return to the school for at least a few days."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

When Harry woke up in the morning, he felt much better. '_I have to look after Minerva_,' he remembered and dragged himself over into her room, noticing that she was peacefully asleep. Harry sat down on the edge of her bed; he carefully felt her forehead and frowned when it felt cool to the touch. '_Oh well, she must be much better today_,' he thought and just considered if he should wake her up when she stirred.

"Harry, what are you doing here? Madam Pomfrey forbade you to get up," she said worriedly.

"Good morning to you too, Minerva; I guess you're feeling better this morning?" Harry asked, slightly annoyed.

"I feel much better; now, let me get up and take you back to bed. How are you feeling, Harry?"

"I'm all right, and I'm not going to let you get up as long as I haven't taken your temperature," Harry replied, sticking the thermometer under her tongue. "37.7, that's much better," he said approvingly, before he spooned both of the potions into his guardian's mouth.

"Thank you Harry; now you're going back to bed and let me check on you," Minerva said sternly, and this time, the teacher won. She fed him his potions and said, "Please try to sleep some more; at least until Madam Pomfrey comes to check on us we have to remain in bed. If you need me just shout."

"Kay," Harry mumbled tiredly, already drifting back to sleep. He spent the whole day asleep, while Minerva obediently stayed in bed reading a book.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

In the morning, Harry woke up to loud voices through the open connecting door, which the house elves had made for Minerva and him the day before, so that they could easily look after each other.

"I'm completely fine, and I'm not going to miss my classes," Minerva said determinedly.

"Minerva, I can tell you that you will be here with a relapse in two days at the latest. You can be glad that Harry didn't catch it from you this time, although he spent day and night at your bedside nursing you back to health, but I don't know if you'll be so lucky the next time."

"Poppy, it's all right if you're so protective of your students, but I'm a teacher, and as I already told you last night I'm going to teach my classes from this morning onwards."

"I don't like it, Minerva; you're absolutely stupid," Pomfrey replied icily and left the room. A few seconds later, she entered Harry's room, looking very angry.

"Good morning Madam Pomfrey. May I attend classes?" Harry asked immediately. "I feel fine today."

"We'll see," the Healer mumbled, waving her wand at the boy. "I'd recommend that you stay in bed today or at least don't attend classes, but knowing that you're as stubborn as your new mother I suspect that you won't listen to me anyway, will you?"

Harry fiercely rubbed his forehead, before he replied, "Madam Pomfrey, I don't know what you mean. So far, I've always listened to you and I didn't plan to change that, although I'd love to attend classes today, because I really feel fine."

"All right, Harry; I'm sorry for what I said; I'm very angry at Minerva, but that has nothing to do with you. You may attend classes if you wish, but I want to see you after lunch."

"Okay," Harry agreed gratefully and obediently swallowed his potions. He quickly took a shower and dressed, before he went to search for Minerva.

"Good morning, Minerva. Are you really going to school today?"

"Of course, Harry, I'm all right. You know how Madam Pomfrey is; she won't let one go easily."

Harry sighed. "Do you want to eat breakfast here or in the Great Hall then?"

"Let's have breakfast here, if you don't mind," Minerva suggested and asked Rose for breakfast.

"Did you hear what Madam Pomfrey said to me?" Harry asked hesitantly.

Minerva threw him an amused glance. "About being as stubborn as your new mother?"

"Yes," Harry chuckled. "I liked that one," he then added softly. "You're really like the mother I never had, and I'd like to thank you for giving me such a nice home, a room just for myself, and a family. I'm very happy here. Thanks a lot, Minerva."

"You're very welcome, Harry, and I'm also very glad to have such a fine son like you are," Minerva replied softly. She sighed. "Harry, could you come to my office straight after the last afternoon class? I'm not sure if I'll feel well enough to stay longer than absolutely necessary considering Poppy's argumentation. You could of course stay longer and come home on your own; I already told you the password to my office."

"No, I'll come to your office after my last afternoon class," Harry promised, "provided that I won't return home straight after Potions."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Thirty minutes later, Harry was heading down for the dungeons. He arrived just in time, slipping into the room, before the professor closed the door.

"Five points from Gryffindor for your tardiness, Mr. Potter," Snape sneered, heading to the front of the classroom, while Harry took a seat next to Hermione.

"Such a pity Potter," Malfoy hissed from the other side of the aisle, giving Harry an expectant look.

However, Harry didn't meet his expectations and remained quiet. '_Oh, what a great start of the day_,' he thought, wondering why he hadn't simply remained in bed.

"Today, we're going to brew an extremely dangerous potion," Professor Snape said in his silky voice, "and I expect everyone to be very careful not to make even the slightest contact with the potion."

"Stay put, Harry," Hermione whispered. "I'll bring your ingredients as well."

Harry gave his friend a grateful nod, before he fiercely rubbed his forehead, wondering why Madam Pomfrey couldn't give him a stronger headache potion. He thanked his friend profoundly and set to work, glancing at Hermione's potion after each step to confirm that he had brewed correctly so far.

Hermione was watching Harry's every move like a hawk and even managed to prevent him from stirring into the wrong direction at one of the last steps of the brewing process. She quickly laid a cool hand on his hand, whispering, "Counter clockwise, Harry."

Harry once more noticed that he was getting excited and felt his body heat up at her cool touch and concerned look. He had to try hard to concentrate on the last step but finally managed to finish his potion flawlessly. Now the potion only had to simmer for two more minutes, and Harry began to relax. He threw a hesitant look to his left side, watching Hermione clean up her table. When their eyes met, Harry felt as if someone had started fireworks inside his stomach. Suddenly, a fast movement just in front of him caught his attention and he turned back to his cauldron that chose this instant to explode all over Harry. The last thing he heard before everything turned black was Hermione's shout, "Malfoy!"

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HP

_Well, seeing that you didn't valuate that I didn't leave a cliffy the last time, I just wrote on to my (you have to admit 'absolutely brilliant') cliffy here. Therefore, the chapter is about twice as long as normal; I hope you don't mind. _

_I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 1****3**

"Malfoy!" Hermione shouted. "What do you think you're doing?" From the corner of her eye she had seen the boy throw something in Harry's cauldron. '_Harry?_' she mused, noticing that Harry was gone.

Suddenly, a small wail from the floor caught her attention. Looking down in horror, she saw a baby lying naked between the black robes that belonged to her sixteen-year-old best friend Harry. She carefully picked the baby up that possessed Harry's brilliant green eyes and his messy black hair, cuddling him close. '_He is shivering_,' she noticed and carefully wrapped him into his robes, before she looked up at the Professor, who was standing in front of her desk, looking terrified.

"What happened, Ms. Granger?" Professor Snape asked in obvious concern without any sneer or malice in his voice.

"Malfoy threw something into Harry's cauldron and his potion exploded," Hermione explained.

"One hundred points from Slytherin," the teacher said quietly and waved his wand around the class, banishing all the potions from the students' cauldrons. "You're dismissed," he told the students, before he turned back to Hermione. "What are we going to do with him? I can't age him back in one step but only a year each day, and we can only give him the aging potion if his condition is well enough. If he has the older Potter's illness, it will take a time until he'll be back to sixteen. We have to take him to Madam Pomfrey, but we also need to inform the Headmaster," he said pensively.

Hermione cleared her throat. "I think the first thing we have to do is to inform Professor McGonagall. She is his guardian, and she will be the one to raise him even if he is a baby."

"All right; nevertheless, I must inform the Headmaster, and we need Madam Pomfrey as well." The Potions Master headed to the fireplace and asked the Headmaster and the Healer to come to Professor McGonagall's office right after the end of the first class, before he motioned Hermione to follow him.

"Wait a moment, Professor; could you please hold him for a moment, so that I can take Harry's and my bag with me?" Hermione held Harry out to the teacher, who uncertainly took the small bundle that was still whimpering from her.

Just when Hermione reached out to take Harry back, the professor noticed that his arm was getting warm and wet. He groaned and asked the student, "Can you please cast a Scourgify spell at my arm and the brat?"

Giggling inwardly Hermione waved her wand at the teacher, before she took her small friend back, noticing that he felt quite warm to the touch. "All right, Professor; let's go," she pulled the teacher out of his thoughts and hurriedly left the classroom after the man.

They just arrived in front of Minerva's office at the end of the first class. The professor knocked, and to Hermione's surprise the Headmaster opened the door. A minute later, Minerva entered the office from the connecting door to her classroom and stopped dead in her tracks. "What are you doing here?" she asked, seeing Professors Dumbledore and Snape, Madam Pomfrey, and Hermione. She didn't even notice Harry, who had fallen asleep in Hermione's arm.

"Minerva, please take a seat," the Headmaster instructed his Deputy in a calming voice. "If I understood Severus correctly, there has been an accident in the Potions classroom, and Harry is currently a baby," he informed Minerva, who glanced around, finally noticing Harry in Hermione's arms.

She reached for the baby, who contentedly nestled into her robes when Hermione handed him over. While Snape quickly explained what had happened, Pomfrey waved her wand at Harry.

"Harry is currently ten months old. Unfortunately, he is suffering from the illness that our sixteen-year-old Harry had. Severus, I need you to brew a fever reducer and a headache potion for a baby, because I can only give him the aging potion when he is fever free. Moreover, I can only age him one year in a day until he turns eleven. Then I can age him straight up to sixteen."

Seeing that everyone was listening quietly, the Mediwitch turned to the Headmaster. "Albus, I'd like to ask you to take over Minerva's classes for today and tomorrow. Minerva is still recovering from bronchitis and came here today against my order. She is still running a temperature and is not well enough to teach, especially if she has to look after her sick baby at the same time." Ignoring Minerva's growl, she continued, "As soon as Severus has the fever reducer ready, we'll give it to him, and provided that his temperature comes down as it should, we can give him the first dose of the aging potion. I believe that you have the aging potion ready, Severus?"

"Yes of course," the Potions Master replied and excused himself, promising to take the finished potion to McGonagall Manor as soon as possible.

Minerva took Harry out of his large robes and waved her wand at the shivering baby, dressing him in a nappy as well as in warm footie pyjamas, before she cuddled him close.

"Professor, may I come with you during the day to help you with Harry?" Hermione asked softly.

"Ms Granger, you would miss all of your classes, and I don't know whom we could ask to take notes for you," Minerva replied hesitantly.

"Minerva!" Pomfrey admonished her harshly. "Don't be stupid. If I were you, I'd accept Ms. Granger's offer. You need the help, believe me. You'll be more than capable to teach Ms. Granger and Harry what they missed as soon as you're completely recovered."

"All right, Ms. Granger, if you're sure that you don't mind missing your classes, I'd be grateful if you could help me."

Madam Pomfrey was the first to step through the Floo, followed by Hermione. Minerva cuddled Harry close and followed the two witches. When they arrived at McGonagall Manor Harry woke up, probably by the uncomfortable way of travelling. He pressed both hands against his forehead and began to wail.

Minerva quickly sat down on the sofa, cuddling the baby close. "My poor sweetie, does your head hurt?" she asked, softly stroking his flushed cheeks.

Harry lazily opened his glassy green eyes and gave Minerva a short nod, causing her to let out a huge gasp. "Harry, do you understand me? Do you know everything that happened?" she asked excitedly.

Harry once more gave her a short nod. "He seems to have the memories of his older self," Minerva told the others.

"Well, that might be," Pomfrey replied sternly, "however, physically he is a baby, and he is going to behave like a baby." She turned to Harry. "I know that your head and your eyes hurt and you probably feel hot and cold at the same time, but Professor Snape is brewing a potion for you to make you better and it'll take about an hour. You must be patient my poor child."

Harry nodded again and closed his eyes, nestling deeper in Minerva's robes, while a small thumb wandered into his mouth.

Suddenly, an alarm went off, and after a glance at her wrist watch Poppy said, "I have to return to the hospital wing. Try to keep him warm, and when Severus brings the potions you may give him one spoon full of each. However, I want you to take his temperature before you give him the potion and again one hour afterwards. If it is low enough to give him the aging potion, I will come and administer it. Otherwise, we'll have to wait a bit. Minerva, I still want you to take your own temperature and if necessary take your potions three times a day." With that, the Healer stepped into the fireplace.

Minerva gave Hermione an annoyed look and sighed, causing the girl to chuckle. "I had suspected Madam Pomfrey only to be as protective of the students, but she seems to be even worse with you."

Sighing again, Minerva explained, "Poppy has been my best friend from our Sorting onwards. That's probably one of the reasons for her protectiveness. Well, we should ask my elves for a crib and everything else we need for a baby."

Twenty minutes later, Minerva and Hermione looked amazed at the crib that was placed in Minerva's room and the changing table in Harry's room. A huge pile of nappies was placed on it, and small piles of baby clothes could be found in the shelves of the changing table. Furthermore, the elves had set up a playpen in the living room with several kinds of toys and books in it.

"Very good, thanks a lot, Rose and Rory," Minerva said gratefully, before she all of a sudden let out a series of harsh coughs. Seeing that Harry was fast asleep, she tried to put him down into his crib, causing the child to open his eyes and wail.

"It's all right, Professor, I'll take him," Hermione said quickly, noticing that Minerva was obviously not feeling well. She took the baby out of his crib, receiving a grateful smile from the green eyes that looked as sick as Minerva's.

"Professor, if you want to lie down for a while, it's all right; I'll look after Harry," Hermione said hesitantly, giving her favourite teacher a piercing look.

Minerva sighed. "Poppy obviously was right as usual. I really thought I was over the bronchitis, but I still don't feel well. However, I'm going to wait with you. I don't think it will take Professor Snape much longer to brew the potions for Harry."

The two women headed back into the living room, where Hermione motioned Minerva to lie down on the sofa, placing Harry on her stomach when she complied. Harry only sighed contentedly and continued to sleep. Hermione chuckled, and Minerva told her, "When he is feeling unwell, Harry tends to sleep through the whole day; it's absolutely amazing."

Finally, Professor Snape stepped out of the fireplace and placed a few potions on the table. "Minerva, are you in need of potions for yourself?" he asked in concern, noticing that Minerva's cheeks were deeply flushed while her green eyes were unnaturally bright. "You look outright ill."

"It's all right, Severus; thank you," Minerva replied. "I have everything I need."

Severus smirked looking at Baby Harry. All of a sudden, he conjured a small stuffed snake that was green with a tail in rainbow colours. Under Minerva's and Hermione's disbelieving looks he pried the snake in Harry's free hand, causing the boy to open his eyes and give the teacher a delighted smile, before he cuddled the snake close.

Minerva warily put a hand to her forehead. "Am I delirious?" she asked in complete surprise.

Hermione chuckled, while the Potions Master smirked and returned to Hogwarts. "All right then, we have to take Harry's temperature," Minerva recalled and sat up, placing Harry in a half sitting position on her lap. "Rose, could you please bring me the snake thermometer?" she asked, and seconds later the elf handed her the grey thing.

Minerva handed the thermometer to Hermione and carefully pulled Harry's pyjamas down over his shoulder, so that the girl could stick the business end of the snake under the baby's armpit, which was difficult, because Harry kept moving away from Hermione's cold touch. When she finally succeeded, Minerva cuddled the baby close, so that the thermometer remained in its correct position. However, Baby Harry with a mixture of his own instincts and the memories of a sixteen-year-old Harry found the thermometer extremely annoying. He wiggled his way away from Minerva's touch, reached for the icy thing that made him shiver, and flung the thermometer across the room against the far wall, where it shattered into hundreds of pieces.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 1****4**

"Harry, you are very naughty," Minerva lightly scolded the child, ending up in a coughing fit, while Hermione waved her wand at the broken thermometer casting the Reparo spell.

"It should be all right," she said when she once more stuck the thermometer under Harry's armpit. This time, she took Harry's hands in her own and allowed him to grab her fingers with his hands, which made him giggle happily, while Minerva cuddled him close in her arm.

"38.3," Minerva finally stated, placing the thermometer on the table. "Can you please give him a spoon full of each of the potions? I'll try to hold him." She turned to Harry. "We want to give you your potions, which will make your headache and your fever go away. Please open your mouth and swallow."

This time, Harry obeyed and swallowed both potions, before he tiredly leaned back into Minerva's robes and drifted off to sleep, lazily putting a thumb in his mouth while his other hand was busily cuddling his snake.

"All right, now we have an hour," Minerva sighed. "Ms Granger, I will ask Rose to bring lunch for you. Would you mind me lie down for an hour?"

"No Professor; in fact I want you to take your temperature as well, and then you should take your potions and go to bed for the hour. I will take Harry in the meantime." She stepped over to Minerva and took Harry from her, before she helped the professor to lie down and carefully felt her forehead, frowning at the warmth of her skin. "Please open up," she told her, holding out the thermometer.

Minerva sighed and grudgingly opened her mouth, mumbling something about annoying students and Mediwitches, while she allowed Hermione to stick the thermometer under her tongue. Hermione sat down on the edge of the sofa, carefully pulling Harry into a comfortable position on her lap, while she curiously watched the movements of the snake's tail. "That's too strange," she commented, giggling, causing Minerva to glare around the thermometer.

"38.8," Hermione finally read, looking at the snake's orange tail. "I believe it was good that Madam Pomfrey sent you home, Professor. Shall I bring you your potions down, or would you prefer to go to bed?"

"I'll just stay here," Minerva replied, "but I can ask one of the elves to bring the potions down here.

"No, I want to go and try to put Harry in his crib anyway," Hermione replied and headed upstairs. This time, the baby was so fast asleep that he didn't notice Hermione putting him down in his crib. The girl put an alert on him, which would alert her if he woke up, and retrieved the potions for the teacher.

After she had helped Minerva to lie down, had placed a cool cloth on her forehead, and had retrieved Minerva's bed covers, carefully draping them over the slightly shivering teacher, Hermione sat down in a comfortable seat and pulled her Potions book out of her bag, noticing in annoyance that Professor Snape had forgotten to assign any homework.

Too soon, the alarm went off notifying the girl that the hour had passed. '_We have to take Harry's temperature again and give him the first dose of the aging potion if he's all right_,' she mused and climbed up the stairs to fetch Harry. Fortunately, the baby didn't wake up when she picked him up and returned to the living room. Seeing that the professor was still sleeping too, Hermione carefully warmed her hands by rubbing them against other, before she tried to pull Harry's pyjama down over his shoulder and stick the thermometer in. '_37.4_,' she finally read from the yellow tail. '_I wonder if that's all right for the aging potion, but Madam Pomfrey said she would come over as soon as she saw the result, didn't she?_' Hermione mused and decided to wait.

A few minutes later, the Healer strode into the room, shaking her head at the form of her best friend. "She will never learn," she mumbled, causing Hermione to chuckle. She quickly waved her wand at the baby twice and nodded contentedly. "All right, we will give him the first dose now. I just checked on him once more and charmed his clothes to grow with him. He will grow quite a lot at this age, and he might be in pain. If you're not comfortable holding him, you may give him to me as soon as I've spelled the aging potion into his stomach."

"I'll be fine," Hermione promised, trying to make Harry lie comfortably on her lap.

An instant later, Harry suddenly began to grow. He tiredly opened his eyes and his lower lip started to quiver dangerously. Hermione picked him up and cuddled him close, carefully rubbing circles into his back to calm him down, while Madam Pomfrey once more waved her wand at the child and stated, "He is one year, eleven months, and ten days old. You haven't fed him at all so far, have you?"

Hermione let out a gasp. "I'm sorry, I completely forgot."

"It's all right; if he had been hungry, he would have told you, dear," the Healer replied gently and called Rose.

"What can Rose do for Mistress Poppy?" the elf asked politely, bowing deeply.

"Can you please bring something to eat for Harry, Rose?"

"Of course, Mistress Poppy." Rose popped away and came back with a small plate filled with carrots, rice, and chicken with a light teriyaki taste, knowing that older Harry loved this.

Hermione pulled Harry into a sitting position on her lap, and Pomfrey spooned the food into his mouth. Harry obediently ate a few spoons full, but then he pressed his mouth shut turning his head away.

"Are you already full, sweetie?" Hermione asked gently, wiping his mouth with a tissue.

"Ye," Harry mumbled, fiercely rubbing his forehead with the back of the hand, in which he held his stuffed snake in a strong grip.

Madam Pomfrey quickly waved her wand at the child, sighing. "I'm sorry, sweetie, but I can't give you another headache potion so soon. Maybe you should lie down next to Minerva and take a small nap, hmm?"

"Ye," Harry replied miserably and slid down from Hermione's lap. He toddled over to the sofa, which Pomfrey hurriedly extended, and climbed up, laying down next to Minerva, mumbling, "Mummy." He cuddled close to his guardian's warm body and lazily moved a thumb into his mouth, cuddling the snake close with his other hand.

"He's so cute," Hermione whispered, giving the small child a fond smile, noticing that he already drifted off to sleep.

"He is really cute," the Healer agreed. "Where did he get the snake by the way?"

Hermione chuckled. "Professor Snape conjured it for him when he came to bring him the potions. He just smirked, conjured the snake, and pried it into his hands, and Harry threw him a never seen smile. It was amazing, although I don't understand their interaction in the least. I always thought they hate each other."

Madam Pomfrey grinned. "I know Professor Snape very well, and I know that he doesn't hate Harry. He never did, but as a spy he had to keep appearances up. In fact, Harry's mother Lily was Professor Snape's best friend, and I can imagine that he knew Harry well when he was a baby. Professor McGonagall will probably be able to tell you more about this, because she was like an unofficial godmother to Harry. She often babysat Harry, and Lily often brought him to Hogwarts to visit with Minerva. They were very close to each other. If I remember correctly, Harry had a stuffed black dog, which he was always carrying around wherever he went. Probably Severus remembered that and found it necessary to give Harry a stuffed animal, even if it was a snake."

"It was a very nice gesture at least," Hermione replied, "and as you can see, Harry seems to adore it. He hasn't let go of it since he received it."

Pomfrey glanced at her wrist watch and sighed. "Well, I have to return to the hospital wing. Are you going to stay here?"

Hermione glanced at her sleeping Head of House and her best friend. "I think Professor McGonagall still needs my help. It's early enough if I return in time for curfew, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is, and you can floo directly to the Gryffindor common room. However, you cannot floo back from there, only from Professor McGonagall's office or from mine."

"May I come to your office then in the morning to return here?" Hermione asked softly.

"Yes, you may," Poppy replied in an equally soft voice, fully aware of the looks Hermione and Harry had given each other when Harry was staying in the hospital wing over lunch break during the last days. "Now, seeing that they're both asleep, shall I show you the library?"

"Library?" Hermione's eyes lit up with excitement, causing the Mediwitch to laugh. "Yes, the library. Do you know how to cast an alert on someone, so that you'll know when he or she wakes up?" she asked more businesslike, causing Hermione to give her an eager nod.

"Yes, Madam Pomfrey, I know that, and I already cast that on Harry when he took a nap at lunchtime." Hermione once more cast the spell at Harry and followed the Healer into the library. "Wow, this is the most beautiful room I've ever seen in a private home," she breathed in total amazement and proceeded to explore the library, only noticing absentmindedly that the Mediwitch excused herself and left.

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Harry all of a sudden woke up to a cold, wet, and extremely unpleasant sensation at his bottom. His nearly two-year-old mind told him to scream, but then his sixteen-year-old mind interfered telling him to go up into his room and look for a new nappy.

The toddler scrambled out from under Minerva's warm covers, carefully letting himself slide down to the floor. As fast as his small feet could carry him he ran to the stairs and slowly climbed up the first ten steps, cuddling his snake close as he went.

When Hermione entered the living room, she noticed horrified that the toddler was climbing up the stairs all on his own although the spell alerted her only a minute ago that the child had woken up. "Harry!" she said in exasperation, not noticing that it came out louder than she had intended.

Harry turned around and looked down in utter surprise, unintentionally letting go of the banister, which he had gripped so far.

When Minerva lazily opened her eyes, waking up by the noise, she was terrified to see Harry tumbling down the stairs.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 1****5**

Hermione pulled her wand, shouting, "Wingardium Leviosa," and hovered the child straight into his playpen, causing him to wail, "Naky!"

Hermione looked at the professor. "I'm sorry, Professor, for waking you up."

Minerva let out a snort. "I can't stay asleep the whole day, Ms. Granger. But what is this all about?"

Hermione quickly explained what happened, before she picked up the snake that had fallen to the floor and gave it to Harry to quieten him.

Harry sat down in relief, sucking on his thumb and cuddling his snake close, before he noticed all of a sudden that there still was a disturbing something down in his nappy. His lower lip began to quiver, and he slowly began to cry in a hardly audible voice, suddenly remembering that a freak like himself shouldn't be heard by anyone.

"Harry, what's wrong?" Hermione asked, noticing the tears running down Harry's cheeks.

"Nappy pwease," Harry mouthed, giving his friend a pleading glance.

"You need your nappy changed, sweetie?" Hermione chuckled. "All right, Harry, let's try to figure out how to do that." She picked the child up, immediately noticing the strange smell coming from his bottom, and carried him up into Harry's bedroom. Gently laying him down on the changing table she opened the bottom part of his pyjamas and examined how to open the nappy, when all of a sudden Harry's sixteen-year-old mind kicked in.

'_This is so embarrassing_,' Harry thought in absolute annoyance. He covered his eyes with both hands and began to try kicking his friend with both feet to pry her away from his nappy, wailing, "Mummy!"

Hermione threw a glance in Harry's deeply flushed face. "Are you embarrassed, Harry? You needn't be. Let me do it quickly, then it'll be over in the blink of an eye," she told him in a soft voice, causing Harry to cry even more.

By the time Minerva had dragged herself on to her feet and up to Harry's room to see what all the screaming was about, Hermione had opened Harry's nappy in spite of his protests, causing Harry's two-year-old mind to feel utter relief. The small boy relaxed and lay back stopping his protests and finally relieved himself right in Hermione's direction, caused by the cool sensation on his bottom.

Minerva gave Harry a stern look while she cast a scourgifying spell at Hermione. "Now stop this behaviour at once, Harry," she lightly scolded the child in a soft but stern voice. "What's your snake going to think if you make such a fuss about it each time?"

Harry looked at his snake, cuddling it close. "Naky," he told Minerva, feeling proud of his beautiful toy.

"Hello Naky; you're very pretty," Minerva cooed, causing Harry to smile happily, while Hermione could change his nappy in peace.

"All right, Harry; now you're as good as new," Hermione finally smiled and Harry smiled back gratefully.

"Fanku Mynee."

"You're welcome, Harry," Hermione replied, smiling, and put Harry down to the floor. "He feels a bit cooler now," she turned to Minerva. "Perhaps I should take him out to play with him for a short while if that's possible here."

Minerva sighed. "If you don't mind, you could take him out into the garden. Just don't let him get near the lake, seeing how fast he is on his small legs."

"That's true," Hermione laughed, before her expression became stern. "Professor, you look outright ill, and you should go back to bed. I promise that I'll do my best to look after Harry. I will wake you up in time for dinner, which is in about an hour."

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When Minerva complied Hermione ran after Harry, whom she found in Minerva's bedroom, busily pulling socks out of a drawer. "Harry, you're very naughty. Put these socks back right NOW," she scolded the child in a calm voice.

Harry looked up with a horrified expression. He had been so engrossed in his work that he hadn't noticed the two women enter the room. Hermione knelt down beside him and began to put the first socks back, motioning Harry to help her.

However, seeing Minerva lie down on her bed, Harry jumped to his feet and ran over to the bed, holding up both arms. "Mummy up," he demanded, followed by a quiet, "pwease."

Minerva sighed and pulled the child up, who lay down next to her, Naky firmly in his hand. "Harry, are you all right?" she asked, watching the boy in concern. "I thought you might want Hermione to take you out into the garden to play with a ball?"

Harry sat up, sneezing. "Kay, pway baww, Mynee."

"Don't tell me you're getting my bronchitis," Minerva mumbled and waved her wand to conjure a snowsuit for him as well as a small, red ball, handing both to Hermione.

Hermione laughed and put the colourful snowsuit on Harry, before she pried the ball in his free hand, seeing that he still held Naky in the other. She carried him down the stairs to where Rory was waiting for them to show them how to get out into the garden.

"Thanks a lot, Rory," Hermione said gratefully, putting Harry down onto the ground. They played ball for nearly half an hour, before Harry suddenly toddled over to Hermione, tiredly leaning his head against her robes.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Hermione asked in concern. "Are you tired?"

Harry merely sniffed a few times and fiercely rubbed his forehead. Hermione crouched down in front of the child, noticing that his eyes were glazed over feverishly. She gently felt his forehead and sighed. "You're very hot, sweetie, aren't you? Let's get you inside and put you to bed with your Mummy. She gently picked the child up, not noticing that he lost his grip on the snake and it fell down to the ground.

"Naky," Harry wailed, letting out a few coughs.

Hermione looked around and picked up the snake, prying it back into Harry's hand. "Naky," he whispered happily.

"Harry, is it 'Naky' or 'Snaky'?" she asked interestedly.

"Fnaky," Harry replied and silently began to cry because he noticed that his throat was getting very sore.

'_As cute as he is, I miss my sixteen-year-old Harry_,' Hermione thought, watching the small boy in concern. She carried him into the living room and sat down on the sofa, carefully taking the warm snowsuit off the child, causing him to shiver violently. "Harry, will you be good and let me take your temperature?" she asked softly, gently stroking his flushed cheeks.

"Hawwy no wike nake," Harry protested, sounding very hoarse, before he let out a few sneezes.

"But it's important, sweetie," Hermione replied, picking up the thermometer. "Afterwards, I'll give you a potion to make you feel better." She warmed her hands, before she carefully pulled down his pyjamas and stuck the thermometer in, cuddling the child close to warm him and keep the thermometer in place at the same time.

While they were waiting, Minerva came down the stairs, smiling when she saw her two students cuddling, causing Hermione to blush. "I'm just taking his temperature," she explained quickly.

Harry underlined the situation by letting out a series of sneezes and coughs, shivering in his friend's arms.

When Hermione finally pulled the snake out it flared pink. "40.6. That's very high, Professor. Shall I call Madam Pomfrey?"

"Yes, please do so," Minerva replied, carefully taking the shivering child from the girl.

A few minutes later, the Healer strode into the room. She handed Hermione a phial. "It didn't help Harry, but I hope that it'll prevent you from catching it from them. Now, I want you to return to Hogwarts; if you floo to my office you'll be well in time for dinner. I will put these two to bed and stay here overnight. After breakfast tomorrow, you may come to my office to use the floo back here if you wish."

"All right Madam Pomfrey," Hermione grudgingly agreed. "Good night, Professor, good night Harry; get better soon, both of you."

"Thanks a lot for helping out today, Ms. Granger," Minerva replied gratefully, while the Healer waved her wand at Harry.

"Yes, he caught the bronchitis," she sighed, picking the boy up. Motioning Minerva to follow her, she entered Minerva's bedroom and extended the bed a little, before she put Harry down and tucked him in carefully. She spelled a few potions into his stomach and repeated the process with Minerva. "I must contact Severus. He has to brew a potion for Harry," she explained, heading to the fireplace.

"Minerva," she sighed when she returned and sat down on the edge of the bed, "normally I'd take you both back with me to the hospital wing. However, since Harry can't stay at Hogwarts overnight, I'm going to remain here with you."

"But won't you be needed at the castle?" Minerva croaked, coughing.

"My watch will alert me in case I'm needed," Pomfrey replied and called Rose to ask for dinner for her two patients.

During the next three days, Minerva and Harry were spiking a very high fever and had to remain in bed all day. Madam Pomfrey took care of them, glad that Hermione came to replace her every day after classes, which was just the time when she was mostly needed at Hogwarts.

On Saturday morning, Harry was cured from the bronchitis, while Minerva was still weak and slightly feverish. "Minerva, I'm going to take Harry to Hogwarts today, and I want you to remain in bed and rest," the Healer told her friend when she checked on her two patients.

"Are you going to give him the aging potion today, if he's so much better?" Minerva enquired.

"No Minerva; he is still much too weak, and it could cause him to have a relapse, which I definitely don't want to risk," the Healer replied firmly and took Harry with her to Hogwarts. She conjured a playpen for the child in her office and sat the boy down, noticing contentedly that he grabbed for a book, while he was cuddling his snake.

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Unfortunately, the type of bronchitis that Minerva had caught seemed to be resistant against the potion, which Madam Pomfrey hadn't only given to Harry but also to Hermione, and it seemed to be very contagious. After breakfast, a group of ten Gryffindor students entered the hospital wing, all with deeply flushed cheeks and glassy eyes, sneezing and coughing permanently.

The Healer groaned inwardly while she waved her wand at the last student, before she ushered the group into a second room of the hospital wing, which was only used in the rare case of an epidemic. "All of you have bronchitis, and you're going to stay here for at least five days," she explained, while she spelled potions into the students' stomachs. Finally, she cast a sleeping spell on the whole group and headed back to Harry. She took the child onto her lap and proceeded to read a story to him, which he seemed to enjoy immensely.

"Fanku Poppy," he cheered, happily leaning into her robes.

When a few hours later five more students arrived with a fever of forty degrees, the Healer asked the Headmaster for a Portkey back to Gryffindor and took all of the sick students back to their dormitories, putting the whole tower into quarantine for the next week. '_I just hope that I'll be resistant to this strange type of the bronchitis_,' she mused while she strode to the fireplace.

"Severus, I'm sorry to disturb you, but I need you to do me a favour today," she said softly.

"And what might that be, Poppy?" the Potions Master asked in his soft silky voice, raising an eyebrow.

"You must take care of Harry."

"I what?! You must be crazy if you think..."

"Severus! We have a mass outbreak of bronchitis in Gryffindor, and Minerva is still down with it. Harry has just recovered, and I need someone to look after him, whom I can trust to be able to care for him. Please Severus, help me."

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 1****6**

"Step out of the way," the Potions Master growled and stepped through the Floo into the hospital wing. He strode over to the playpen and looked down in disgust, but Madam Pomfrey noticed how his features softened when he saw the child, which looked at him with Lily's green eyes and a broad smile on his face, busily cuddling his stuffed snake.

The Healer took Harry out of his playpen and put him onto the floor, before she shrunk the playpen and laid it into Harry's changing bag, which she handed to the Potions Master. "You find nappies and everything you might need in here. You have to check on him and give him his potions after lunch. He'll probably need to take a nap then," she instructed the teacher, before she explained to Harry, "Professor Snape will look after you today, because I have many sick students to care for and Minerva is still ill. Even Hermione has caught bronchitis now."

Harry threw her a sad glance. "Mummy an Mynee fick?" he enquired. "Me tay Nape?"

"Exactly sweetie. I will come and take you back home in the evening," Pomfrey promised, causing Harry to give her an understanding nod.

"All right Potter, let's go," Snape told the child and turned to the door.

'_Oh no_,' sixteen-year-old Harry's mind groaned inwardly; however, his younger mind won and ran after the professor, reaching for his hand. "Me go Nape," he said firmly, looking up to the tall man's face, causing the man to hesitantly grab his hand.

Professor Snape really tried to walk slowly; however, his legs were so long that Harry had to run in order to keep up with the man's pace, and by the time they reached the entrance hall, he was already completely exhausted. He stopped walking and threw both arms in the air, demanding, "Up!"

The teacher sighed and looked into the small boy's face. "By the speed you're walking we won't reach my quarters in time for lunch; let's just go into the Great Hall and wait until lunch is going to start." He went ahead, and Harry hurriedly followed him up to the Head table, where Professor Flitwick, who was already sitting at the table talking with Professor Sprout, quickly conjured a children's chair for him.

"Fanku," Harry said in a small voice and tried to climb up into the chair, failing miserably.

Snape smirked and placed the child into his chair, receiving a grateful but tired smile from Harry. Finally, lunch appeared on the tables, and a children's plate filled with potatoes, carrots, chicken, and several other things of which Dobby knew that Harry liked them appeared in front of the child. Harry however was sad, because neither his mummy, nor Poppy, nor Hermione were there, he was feeling unwell, because his head and his eyes hurt, and he was tired, because it was near to his nap time. He couldn't convince himself to eat more than three bites, and neither Professor Snape nor Professor Sprout, who was sitting on his other side, could convince him to eat more.

"Naky," Harry said proudly, showing Professor Sprout his snake.

"Oh, she is beautiful, isn't she?" the professor commended and Harry smiled happily.

"I believe I need to put him to bed," Snape finally said and stood, gently picking Harry up. Knowing that the child wasn't in a condition to walk down to the dungeons, he gave Harry a piggyback ride, causing the boy to laugh with pleasure. Down in Professor Snape's private quarters, the teacher put Harry into the playpen and told him, "It's time for a nap, Potter."

Harry however was much too excited from his piggyback ride and too interested in the books he discovered in the playpen to sleep. "Hawwy no sweep, me pway," he firmly told the professor.

The man pointed his wand at Harry's head, taking his temperature, and spelled his potions into his stomach before he replied, "No, you're feverish and tired, and you need to take a nap. You may call me when you wake up; I'll be over there in my lab. Now close your eyes and go to sleep."

Harry obediently closed his eyes but couldn't sleep right away. '_No story?_' he thought, feeling utterly disappointed. Minerva, Hermione, and even Madam Pomfrey always used to read a story to him when he was supposed to fall asleep. '_No story no sleep_,' Harry thought stubbornly, when he suddenly heard the fireplace flare and Pomfrey's voice penetrated his ear.

"Hello Severus, is everything all right? How is Harry?"

"He is completely exhausted, hardly ate anything, and has a slight fever; other than that he's fine," the professor replied.

"All right, Severus, thanks a lot. I'm going to return to Gryffindor immediately, because I'm afraid that I'm coming down with the thing too, and I don't want you to get it. I'll come and get Harry around dinner time."

With that, the Healer stepped back into the fireplace and Harry heard her shout, "Gryffindor."

Suddenly, an idea formed itself in Harry's mind. '_I want Poppy or Mione to read me a story_,' he thought and flung himself out of the playpen with his Naky in one hand and a story book in the other and hurried into the fireplace, shouting, "Gwyffindow."

Since the Gryffindor fireplace was charmed to allow students the use of the internal Floo network in order to give them the chance to make contact with their Head of House when she was at home with Harry, the child managed to use the Floo to the Gryffindor common room. Only a few students were sitting in the common room doing their homework. A few of them let out a surprised gasp when Harry stumbled out of the fireplace.

"Harry, what are you doing here?" a girl, whom his older mind recognized as Ginny, asked in surprise. "Nobody is supposed to visit us because we're in quarantine," she added, giving Harry a questioning look.

"No waneen, me wan Mynee wead towy," Harry replied firmly.

"You want Hermione to read you a story?" Ginny repeated questioningly, receiving a confirming nod from the boy. "But you're not allowed to visit her, she's ill."

"Me woud Mynee," Harry said with determination.

"Did Madam Pomfrey say so?" Ginny still wasn't convinced.

"Ye, Poppy Mynee fick," Harry told the girl, slowly getting annoyed and tired.

"All right, sweetie, since you're a boy you won't be able to climb up to her dormitory, but I'll carry you," Ginny finally gave in and picked the child up, cuddling him close while she took him to the sixth year girls' dormitory. "Here, that's Hermione's bed," she pointed out, seeing Harry's confused look because all the beds in the room were occupied.

"Fanku," Harry beamed and hurried over to Hermione's bedside. Seeing that she was asleep, he climbed into her bed and happily lay down between her and the wall, cuddling close to her warm body.

Nobody saw Harry, who was fast asleep in Hermione's arms, and even Madam Pomfrey, who came during the afternoon to check on the girl and spell potions into her, didn't notice the presence of one little boy in the girls' dormitory.

When Hermione woke up a few hours later, Harry was still asleep. '_What is he doing here?_' Hermione thought horrified. '_He was already getting better; I just hope he won't get sick again_.' She carefully felt his forehead, but it was cool against the heat of her own skin. '_Well, Madam Pomfrey must know about it; he wouldn't have been able to come here on his own_,' she calmed herself, cuddling the small boy close. "I love you Harry," she mumbled into his ear. "I love you, sweetie, and I miss your older self so much."

Harry blinked. "Wob you too, Mynee," he replied sleepily.

Suddenly, the Headmaster's voice could be heard all over the castle. "Dear students, dear teachers, two-year-old Harry has been missing the whole afternoon. If anyone has seen Harry or knows where he is, please contact me immediately. All students are asked to help with the search. Please note that Gryffindor tower is in quarantine, and nobody is allowed to get in or out of the tower."

"Harry!" Hermione shouted horrified, ending up in a coughing fit. "They are looking for you," she croaked.

"Me go," Harry replied in a small voice and placed a sloppy kiss on Hermione's cheek.

"I'll take you down to the common room. We have to look for Madam Pomfrey or floo-call the Headmaster; otherwise you won't get out of here," Hermione replied and scrambled out of her bed, picking up the small child.

Noticing that the girl was shivering violently, Harry slung both arms around her shoulders, mumbling, "Me wawm Mynee, no cow."

"You're going to warm me, Harry? That's nice because I'm so cold today," Hermione replied hoarsely, letting out a few harsh coughs while she carried Harry down to the common room.

"Hermione, what are you doing out of bed?" Ginny asked sternly, taking Harry from her. "Yes, I heard the announcement and I was just going to come and collect him. I'll floo-call the Headmaster.

At that instant, Madam Pomfrey came by and groaned in exasperation. "Ms. Granger, back into bed immediately! Ms. Weasley... Oh no! Harry!" she interrupted herself only to ask angrily, "What are you doing here? The whole school is searching for you." She hurried to the fireplace and called Dumbledore. "Harry is here, in Gryffindor. Don't ask me how he managed to get in here. I'm going to take him home right this instant."

"Do that Poppy, and maybe you should get some rest at Minerva's home; you don't look well, my dear," Dumbledore replied, causing Poppy to return an upset frown, mumbling something about sick students and no time to be ill.

The Healer took Harry into her arms and stepped into the fireplace, shouting, "McGonagall Manor."

'_She feels as hot as Hermione_,' Harry's sixteen-year-old mind noticed in concern when everything began to turn around. Before he could voice his thoughts, the woman fainted as soon as they were flung out of the fireplace in Minerva's office.

* * *

HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 1****7**

Harry threw a horrified look at the Healer. '_What now_?' he mused, panicking, before he dashed out of the room into the living room, where Minerva was resting on the sofa. "Mummy, come! Poppy fick!" she shouted, jumping up and down to emphasize his command.

Noticing the panicked look in the small boy's eyes, Minerva jumped up and hurried after Harry, stopping dead in her tracks when she saw her friend lying on the floor. She carefully felt her forehead and gasped, before she called the house elves. "Rory, please take Poppy to the room where she always stays during the holidays; Rose, please go to Hogwarts and tell Professor Snape that Poppy is ill and will stay at my Manor until her recovery. He'll give you potions for her."

When both elves had popped away, Minerva hurried up to the second floor and worriedly entered the guest room. By the time Harry reached the room, she had already enervated her friend, transfigured her robes into pyjamas, and was listening to her rambling. "Minerva, I can't stay here, have to look after the students; the whole Gryffindor tower is in quarantine and twenty students are already ill."

"You can either stay here willingly, or I will put you in a body bind," Minerva replied firmly, giving Rose a grateful smile when she put several potions as well as the snake thermometer on Poppy's night table. "Poppy, are you sure that you caught the same thing that we had, or do I have to call someone to examine you?"

"No Min, I'm sure; just give me the potion and I'll be fine," Poppy replied impatiently, causing Minerva to let out a snort.

She picked up the snake thermometer and stuck it into the Healer's mouth as soon as she opened it to protest. Seeing that Minerva sat down on the edge of the bed, Harry excitedly climbed on the bed, making himself comfortable at Poppy's other side, and tried to grab the moving tail. "No Harry, stop it. You can play with Naky," Minerva admonished him sternly, causing Harry to pout, before he made up his mind and cuddled Naky close.

Harry continued to watch the moving snake's tail and giggled amazed when it turned pink. "Wook Naky, is pwetty," he commentated and proceeded to cuddle with Poppy, now that the thing was gone from her face.

"Harry, you must wait a moment, sweetie; I have to give Aunt Poppy her potions first," Minerva told him, causing the child to obediently sit back and wait. When Poppy finally lay back and relaxed, Minerva glanced at the clock over the door. "Poppy, I'll head to Gryffindor and look after the students. May I leave Harry here?"

"You're going nowhere, Minerva; you're still not well," the Healer tried to object, but Minerva kissed Harry, telling him she would be back in an hour, and left, ignoring her completely.

When Minerva returned an hour later, her friend was resting comfortably, and Harry was carefully bathing her face with the cloth that Minerva had charmed to stay cool, while he was busily cuddling Naky with his other hand.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Minerva efficiently managed to keep her friend in bed for a day, before Pomfrey insisted to return to the castle in order to look for the students in Gryffindor. "If it's true that nobody else got sick so far, I'm going to release the quarantine over the Gryffindor tower," she announced thoughtfully.

"All right, and I will go to school to teach my students," Minerva replied angrily, ignoring the Healer's protests stating that she was still running a temperature. "You're much worse, Poppy, and I don't care anymore," she argued, taking Harry with her to the classroom.

She put Harry into the playpen next to her desk and waited for the students to enter the room, watching her small son in concern. He was leaning back into the cushions she had placed into the playpen, his snake tucked safely under his arm and the other arm's thumb firmly in his mouth. From time to time, he pulled his thumb out in order to rub his eyes or his forehead. '_I hope he'll be better tomorrow, so that we can give him the next step of the aging potion_,' she mused when the first students, the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff sixth years, entered the room.

"Oh, he's so cute," could be heard all over the classroom, and Minerva noticed in annoyance that the students, especially the girls, kept watching Harry over the whole class.

"As homework, you will write a three foot essay about the difficulties in transfiguring plush cats into live cats and what might occur if you're not careful... Or should I better assign you an essay about plush snakes with rainbow coloured tails?" she asked sternly, seeing that everyone was still watching Harry in fascination.

Seeing that their teacher's mouth was stretched to a thin line, the students dared not reply but hurriedly left the room.

'_Oh, it's going to be a long day_,' Minerva mused, while she held Harry on her lap until the next students arrived.

"Ginny!" Harry shouted in delight and hurried over to the girl, climbing onto her lap, before Minerva could put him back into the playpen.

"It's all right; he's so cute," Ginny told the professor, gently stroking Harry's soft and warm cheeks.

"Well, as long as he doesn't disturb you," the teacher gave in, sighing.

However, Harry remained quiet on the girl's lap and half through the class he tiredly laid his achy head on Ginny's shoulder, put a thumb in his mouth, and fell asleep. He only woke up when Minerva put him back into his playpen at the beginning of the next class.

Only very few sixth year students entered the classroom, because most of the Gryffindor sixth years and a few Slytherins were ill.

For a few minutes, Harry watched as his older self's classmates tried to transfigure their cats like the other sixth year students had done in the morning. Suddenly, his sixteen-year-old mind took over. He quickly took the thumb out of his mouth and groaned, seeing Ron transfigure the cat in a plush mouse. He held out his hand, and seconds later, Ron's mouse landed in his hand. The two year old gave the plush mouse an intense glare, causing it to change into a small green snake with a rainbow-coloured tail just like Naky. However, the snake was alive.

"Hello little onesss," it hissed. "Who are yousss?"

"I Hawwy," the child replied in a small voice. "You pwetty."

"Harry!" Ron shouted in obvious disgust at Harry's hissing. "Professor, he took my cat and transfigured it into a snake."

Minerva quickly conjured a new cat for Ron, before she threw a charm at the snake, making sure that it couldn't harm anyone.

"Are you going to let him keep the snake?" Ron asked unbelievingly. "He's hissing at it."

"He is speaking in Parseltongue. It's nothing new, is it?" Draco Malfoy hissed at Ron, making hissing sounds that caused everyone to laugh. "Everyone knows that Potter can speak to snakes, so what's your problem?"

"Ah, you only say so because you're a Slytherin. It's your fault that Harry is de-aged anyway," Ron gave back, causing the professor to throw him a stern look.

"Ten points from Gryffindor for your behaviour, Mr. Weasley, and now continue with your work, everyone."

Seeing that Minerva turned back to her desk, Harry showed her the snake and said, "Wook Mummy, pwetty nake my nake."

Everyone heard the high childish voice and couldn't help laughing at the innocent child's cuteness. Minerva sighed in relief when the class was over. She took Harry to the Great Hall for a small lunch, intending to put him back into the playpen for a most needed nap straight afterwards. However, after lunch, she had to remain at the Head table for a discussion about a fight that had occurred between a Slytherin student and a Gryffindor, who both ended up in the hospital wing with broken noses, and Harry used the instant when Minerva turned her eyes from him to hurry to Ginny.

"Ginny take me Mynee?" he demanded pleadingly.

Uncertain if she could take the child with her, Ginny picked him up and walked by the Head table, announcing that she was going to take Harry to Gryffindor and bring him to the Transfiguration classroom at the beginning of the afternoon classes.

"All right," Minerva replied totally absentmindedly.

Ginny took Harry into the sixth year girls' dormitory once more, and Harry threw her a grateful glance, before he hurried to Hermione's bedside. The girl put the book she had just been reading away and smiled at the child, whom she had missed a lot during the last two days.

"Mynee fick?" Harry enquired, putting a small hand on the girl's forehead like everyone was always doing with him. "No wawm," he confirmed, shaking his head, before he tiredly lay down next to Hermione, who in turn felt his forehead that was as hot as her own.

"I don't think you're supposed to run around here, you're not completely well either."

However, Harry had already drifted off to sleep, Naky in his arm and the other snake curled up around his neck, which Hermione fortunately didn't realize when she pulled the child close and proceeded to take a nap together with the boy.

That's how Ginny found the two at the end of lunch break. She decided to let them sleep and quickly went by the Transfiguration classroom to inform Minerva.

"All right; thank you Ms. Weasley. I'll go and collect him after classes," the teacher replied, feeling slightly angered at the child. '_He knows better than to cuddle with Hermione while she is ill, especially after the lecture Poppy gave him yesterday_,' she mused in concern, knowing that her son's condition wasn't good and that he could easily get sick again. When she entered the sixth year girls' dormitory, Hermione and Harry were still fast asleep, cuddled close to each other. Minerva shook her head and gently picked Harry up, trying not to wake up the sick student. She pondered staying at Hogwarts for dinner, but knowing that Harry obviously wasn't feeling too well considering that he slept so much, she decided to head home.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

As soon as Minerva and Harry stepped out of the fireplace, the woman sat on the sofa in the living room and made Harry sit on her lap with his face in her direction.

"Harry," she slowly began to speak, "what you did in the third class this morning when you took Ron Weasley's cat away and transfigured it into a snake was very naughty. You may not take things from the students. Do you understand me? Moreover, Aunt Poppy only told you yesterday that you're not allowed to visit sick students, let alone climb into their beds and cuddle with them, because you could easily get sick too. You were very naughty today, sweetie."

"Sowwy Mummy," Harry replied and tears began to run down his face.

"I hope that you're sorry and won't do it again, Harry. Until dinner you'll be in time out in your playpen, which means without any toys and alone in your room," Minerva explained and placed the playpen into Harry's room taking all the toys and books out. She put Harry in the playpen and unobtrusively waved her wand, putting strong wards around the playpen, so that even sixteen-year-old Harry wouldn't be able to break them. "If you feel sick or have any problems, you may call me; I'll be in the living room," she told the child and left the room, ignoring the tears that were pouring down his cheeks.

An hour later, Poppy entered the living room, astonished to see Minerva alone. "Where is Harry?" she asked in surprise, sounding very hoarse.

"He's in time out in his playpen up in his room," Minerva explained quickly, worriedly watching her friend's flushed cheeks and her glassy eyes. "You're not all right, Poppy, let me put you back to bed."

The Healer let herself sink into a chair. "Stop it, Minerva, I know. Albus already gave me a lecture, before he sent me here and told me he didn't want to see me back today or tomorrow. And you think that Harry will remain in his playpen, if he's alone in his room?"

"I put really strong wards around him, which even older Harry wouldn't be able to break yet," Minerva replied and steadied her friend as they climbed up the stairs.

"Let me quickly look after Harry. I haven't seen him since the morning," Pomfrey insisted and entered the child's room. "He's in his playpen?" she croaked, pointing over to the empty playpen.

* * *

HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 1****8**

"Oh no," Minerva groaned, looking around in horror.

"There he is," Madam Pomfrey pointed to older Harry's bed, on which the two-year-old was sprawled, fast asleep. She heavily let herself sink on a chair and waved her wand at the boy. "Well, he's obviously not in his best condition tonight. I'll give him a nutrient potion and a sleeping draught, so that he can have a good rest, and then I hope to be able to give him his aging potion in the morning."

"How could he get around the wards?" Minerva breathed, giving the Healer an unbelieving look.

"I have no idea, Min. I only know that he is extremely powerful," Pomfrey replied tiredly, sounding very hoarse.

"Did you see his snake, Poppy?" Minerva asked, pointing to the small snake that was rolled up at the end of Harry's bed, before she motioned her friend to follow her into the guest room. "Now go to bed, Poppy, I'll be back and check on you in five minutes."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

In the morning, Harry woke up by his snake's hissing. "My you're a lazzziybonesss, sssleeping all day longsss."

Harry tiredly opened his eyes and gave the unfriendly snake a piercing look, and an instant later, a small, stuffed snake was lying on its place. He quickly scrambled out of bed in search for his Mummy and climbed on her bed, lying down once more in her arms. "Hey sweetie, are you already up?" Minerva asked gently, kissing his forehead, before she cuddled him close. "Oh right, I have to get up," she suddenly remembered. "Aunt Poppy is here, and I have to make sure that she stays in bed today," she told the child and quickly got up.

"Poppy?" Harry asked in delight and ran after his guardian, who silently entered the guest room and sat down on the edge of Poppy's bed. She carefully felt her forehead and sighed. "No, she definitely has to stay in bed today," she told Harry. "Will you help me make Aunt Poppy stay here, Harry?"

"Ye," Harry shouted excitedly. '_Of course, I'll make her feel better_,' his half sixteen-year-old mind thought. He took the charmed cloth and placed it on her forehead, before he picked up the snake thermometer and tried to stick it in the woman's half open mouth.

"No Harry," Minerva sighed in exasperation, "you cannot just stick it into her mouth. We have to wake her up first."

Harry leaned over, placing a sloppy kiss on Poppy's cheek, before he asked, "Poppy wake?"

"Yes sweetie, I'm awake," the Healer croaked tiredly, looking at Minerva and Harry through half open eyes.

"How do you feel, Poppy? Not that you look any better than yesterday," Minerva asked, taking the thermometer from Harry.

"Not good, but it's already better than yesterday," Poppy replied hoarsely and threw Minerva an angry glare when she stuck the thermometer under her tongue.

"39.8, Poppy; you will definitely stay in bed today," Minerva said firmly.

"Me wif Poppy," Harry informed them, climbed up on Poppy's bed, and lay down next to her, while Minerva made her friend drink her potions.

The Healer threw Minerva a disgusted glare and reached for her wand, which she pointed at Harry and then at Minerva, clucking disapprovingly, before she ended up in a coughing fit.

"Minerva, I'd like to give him his potions right now and then I can probably give him the aging potion in an hour. Just leave him here today; we'll probably be asleep most of the day anyway."

"Are you sure?" Minerva enquired. Seeing her colleague and her small son nod, she sighed in relief and left the room, heading to her classroom at Hogwarts.

Harry cuddled close to the Mediwitch, falling asleep within seconds, while Poppy spelled the headache potion, fever reducer, and a nutrient potion in his stomach as well as the eye drops in his eyes. '_Knowing how he normally evades sleep, he must be very ill, if he sleeps that much, and he did that already before he was de-aged_,' she mused, while she pointed her wand at her wrist watch to set an alarm that would wake her up in time to check on Harry and give him the aging potion.

When Minerva returned home after her first morning class to look after Poppy and Harry, she found a whimpering three-year-old in Poppy's arms, shouting "Mummy!" as soon as she came into view.

Minerva sat on the edge of Poppy's bed and pulled the child on her lap, softly stroking his cheeks. "How are you feeling, Harry?"

"It hawts," Harry whispered back.

"I'm sure that it still hurts a lot, but it'll go away, if you rest a bit more," Minerva said soothingly, giving Poppy a questioning glance.

"I already gave him a pain relieving potion, but I think he needs rest. His joints ache and he has quite a fever, but he'll be fine in a few hours."

How right the Healer was! When Minerva came back during lunchtime, Harry was sitting next to his playpen reading a book. "Mummy," he said smiling, running over to her, throwing his small arms around her legs.

"Hey sweetie, are you feeling better?" Minerva asked gently, picked the child up, giving him a piercing look.

"Yes," Harry replied, yawning. "Mummy, Aunt Poppy is bouwing. Can I go Hogwas wif you?"

"Let's have lunch first, and then we'll decide if you're well enough to accompany me, Harry. Aunt Poppy is not boring but very ill," Minerva replied carefully, before she stepped over to Poppy and felt her forehead.

"Oh Minerva, you're already back," Poppy stated in surprise. "I must have slept the whole morning. Was everything all right at Hogwarts?"

Minerva let out a snort. "Apart from the fact that Albus went to look after the sick students this morning; he told them that you were sick and that they could get up and attend classes if they felt well enough. I already had to send Katie and John back to bed with a fever, and I only have to teach the sixth year class in the afternoon."

"That was the class, where most of the students were ill," Poppy agreed. "Albus is really irresponsible; wait until I get to exchange a word with him. He could have sent Severus to properly check on the students." She sat up tiredly. "I'll go to Hogwarts and look after the students."

Minerva pushed her down with determination. "You will not do such a thing. I will send them back to their dormitories if necessary. Now, let's have lunch, and then I'm going to take Harry with me for the afternoon, if you don't mind."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Forty minutes later, Minerva and Harry arrived in the Transfiguration classroom. It was still ten minutes before the start of the class, but Minerva still had to prepare everything for Harry. She had just put the playpen next to her desk, when Hermione entered the classroom.

"Harry!" the girl exclaimed, giving the boy a huge smile, only to add, "Hello Professor."

"Hi Mione," Harry gave back shyly.

"Hello Hermione," Minerva answered, giving the girl a piercing look. She definitely looked better, but her eyes were still glazed over, and her cheeks were unnaturally red. The teacher stepped over to Hermione, who had just picked up Harry, and carefully felt her forehead, sighing. "Hermione, you still have a fever, and you belong into bed," she said sternly. "Please go back to your dormitory."

Hermione gave her a pleading look. "Oh no, professor, please let me stay; I feel fine, and I'd like to babysit Harry."

Harry threw Minerva a hopeful look. "Can Mione wif me, Mummy? I be good and look after her. Me take Mione home?"

"I thought you wanted attend classes, Harry?" Minerva asked amused, before her face took on a stern expression.

"But tay wif Mione is bestest," Harry replied sincerely.

Minerva frowned. "All right, Hermione; if you really want to look after Harry and feel well enough, you may take him back home. Please see Madam Pomfrey, who is staying in the guest room because she is very ill, and let her check on you first and give you potions if necessary. If she tells you it's all right, you may play with Harry; otherwise you can lie down in Harry's bed; Harry can still use his crib."

"All right, thanks a lot, Professor," Hermione said happily and took Harry through the Floo to McGonagall Manor.

Madam Pomfrey sleepily checked on Hermione and sent her to bed, swearing about the Headmaster. Hermione and Harry spent the whole afternoon in Harry's room, talking, cuddling, and sleeping next to each other. The Healer checked on them several times but let them in peace. Hermione and Harry were just about to fall asleep again, when Harry suddenly scrambled out of bed and ran over to Madam Pomfrey's room, urgently shouting, "Aunt Poppy!"

* * *

HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter ****19**

"Aunt Poppy! I haww to go wee-wee," Harry said urgently, pulling his pants down as he ran. The Healer jumped out of her bed and hurried the child out of the room in the direction of the bathroom, running straight into Hermione, who had worriedly followed the child. Seeing the girl, Harry blushed terribly, trying to hide behind Pomfrey.

"It's all right, Madam Pomfrey, I'll take him. Please go back to bed," Hermione told the Mediwitch firmly, trying to grab Harry's hand.

"No Hermione, I think I'll need to take our sweetie," Poppy replied smiling. "He seems to be embarrassed."

Finally, Hermione understood as well and went back into Harry's room, while her face that was already flushed due to the fever turned into a deep red colour. Five minutes later, Harry was back and beaming with pride. He pointed to the changing table and asked, "Mione, can you make aww de nappief go'way, pwease? No need nappy anymowe."

Hermione laughed and pointed her wand at the changing table, banishing all the nappies. "My, you're really a big boy now, aren't you? Nevertheless, I'm going to take a nap. Do you want to cuddle?"

"Ye," Harry replied, yawning, before he rubbed his eyes and his forehead and climbed into bed.

Hermione and Harry slept through the whole evening, and Pomfrey checked on them, spelling nutrient potions and all the other potions they needed into their stomachs, and decided to let them sleep.

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Twenty minutes before the beginning of curfew at Hogwarts, Minerva lightly shook Hermione to wake her up. "I'm so sorry, Hermione, but you need to return to Hogwarts. I can't let you stay here overnight without your parents' permission."

"Why?" Hermione enquired astonished. "My parents wouldn't care anyway, but I'm already of age, so there is no need to even ask them, is there?"

Minerva sighed in annoyance of her own stupidity. "I'm sorry, Hermione, that's right. Sorry, but I forgot that you're already seventeen. In that case you may remain here if you wish. I'll take Harry with me in my bed." She transfigured the girl's school clothes into comfortable pyjamas and called Rose. "Rose, please go to the Gryffindor sixth year girls' dormitory and tell the girls that Ms. Granger is ill and won't return for the night."

"Of course Mistress Minerva," Rose replied bowing and popped away.

Minerva sat on the edge of Hermione's bed. "Thank you for looking after Harry today in spite of feeling unwell."

Hermione threw her favourite teacher a warm smile. "Anytime, Professor. I love being together with Harry even at this age. It's funny to speak with him, because he partly talks with his three-year-old mind and partly like a sixteen-year-old. However, I think he might be quite embarrassed when he's back to his normal age."

Minerva laughed and placed a cool cloth on Hermione's forehead, before she said, "Madam Pomfrey checked on you and told me that you need to rest at least two more days, before you may go back to classes. Therefore, there is no need to get up early tomorrow. I hope that I can convince Madam Pomfrey to stay in bed as well, and I hope that we can age Harry up to four tomorrow. Do you need anything else for the night?"

"No, thank you, Professor," Hermione replied and tiredly closed her eyes, smiling when Minerva carefully tucked her in, before she picked Harry up and left the room.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

During the next two days, Hermione and Harry spent most of the time sleeping, cuddling, and talking with each other. Since nobody had been able to keep Madam Pomfrey in bed any longer and Minerva had to teach classes, they stayed all on their own. However, Harry, who had developed quite a fever, so that they couldn't give him the aging potion, obeyed Hermione and did exactly as he was told. On Thursday afternoon however, Hermione told him that she had to study for two hours and that he should play or look at his books alone for a short while.

Harry became bored very soon and decided to go flying. So far, he had never even thought about flying since he was de-aged, and considering his bad condition he wouldn't have been allowed anyway, but noticing his broom waiting for him behind the wardrobe made him wanting to fly so badly that he couldn't resist. Seeing that Hermione was completely engrossed in her school work, he silently took his Firebolt and headed for the door leading into the huge garden behind the Manor.

At first, the three-year-old had difficulties to control the fast broom, but after a while he had so much fun that he forgot everything around him. He conjured a Snitch and spent the afternoon looking for the Snitch and releasing it again as soon as he caught it. Only two hours later, Hermione finally noticed how quiet it was and began to search for the child. After looking all over the Manor for nearly an hour, she finally gave up and called Rose and Rory. "I'm sorry, but Harry somehow escaped me and I can't find him," she told the elves under tears.

"Don't worry, Mistress Hermione. We know where little Master Harry is. Look out of the window, dear," Rose replied calmingly, causing Hermione to throw a close look at the park.

"Oh no! He is flying," she groaned and hurried outside after thanking the elves profusely. Unfortunately, Harry chose exactly the moment, on which she stepped outside, to pull into a deep dive, causing Hermione to let out a small cry. However, his three-year-old body wasn't able to do what his sixteen-year-old mind told him, and Harry couldn't manage to pull up in time before hitting the ground.

Hermione watched the scene in horror, which intensified when she noticed that only the Firebold had crashed into the ground while Harry was gone. Only a minute later, she noticed a beautiful blue phoenix hover a few metres above the ground and gave the bird a questioning look. "Harry?" she asked in confusion.

The phoenix trilled something, which she couldn't understand, and flew down to the ground where it transformed back into Harry.

"Harry! You're an Animagus!" Hermione said unbelievingly. "That's too brilliant!"

Harry looked up in her brown eyes. "Pwease don' teww Mummy. Nowbody know."

"And you don't want anybody to know, sweetie?" Hermione asked in understanding and picked the child and his broom up, carrying them back to Harry's room.

In the evening, Madam Pomfrey finally allowed Hermione to go back to classes in the morning but frowned when she noticed that Harry's fever had gone up even more. However, Hermione had promised Harry not to tell about his flying and she kept her promise, leaving the adults to wonder what was wrong.

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On Friday morning, Minerva was called to the school very early in the morning, because a group of Gryffindor first years had put up a nightly fight with a group of Slytherins, and a dozen students were in the hospital wing with broken bones. She quickly woke Hermione up and asked her to check on Harry and dress him, so that she could bring him with her to Hogwarts and take him to the Transfiguration classroom, if his condition was good enough, or to the hospital wing, if he was too ill.

"Provided that you feel well enough, Hermione," the teacher added as an afterthought.

"Of course, Professor, no problem," Hermione promised and quickly got up.

"Thank you, Hermione, and please don't forget to eat breakfast. It will be ready on the table in the living room."

Hermione hurriedly took a shower and put on her school clothes, before she entered Minerva's bedroom to rouse Harry, who was still fast asleep. She sat on the edge of the bed and placed her cool hand on Harry's forehead, causing the child to shiver violently and open his eyes.

"Good morning, sweetie," Hermione cooed. "How are you today?"

"Fine," Harry replied, too tired to switch from automatic mode to use his brain.

"I don't think so," Hermione replied worriedly. "Let me take your temperature, and we'll see." She quickly retrieved the thermometer and Harry's potions from the night table in Harry's room.

"All right, Harry, open up please," Hermione said, before she noticed that the bed was completely empty. '_Well, he probably went to the toilet_,' she thought and waited a few minutes. Ten minutes later, Harry had yet to show up, and Hermione worriedly walked to the bathroom, but there was no sign of the small child.

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HP

**_Thanks __to the few people, who were so kind to review, although ffnet are not sending update mails out at the moment. I recommend that you either check out my profile page to see if any of my stories are updated since I'm normally updating daily or that you join my Yahoo Newsgroup (the link is on my profile page), because I'm sending out update mails in times when ffnet are having problems with their mails (only at these times of course). _**

_I'm not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 2****0**

"Harry, please come on; we don't have so much time," Hermione pleaded, but Harry still didn't show up. Suddenly, a series of sneezes coming from the guest room, in which Madam Pomfrey had stayed, penetrated her ears, and she hurried into the guest room, only to find Harry hidden under the bed. "Harry, what are you doing?" she lightly scolded the child, before she picked him up and carried him to the changing table, where she put him down in relief.

"Now please let me take your temperature while I get you dressed, Harry, we don't have much more time to lose," she told the boy sternly. "Otherwise, I will just take you to Hogwarts with me and leave you in the hospital wing."

"No!" Harry replied terrified and gave her a pleading look from his glassy green eyes.

"Then open up, or shall I stick it into your bum to take your temperature?" Hermione asked, getting extremely impatient.

"No," Harry said horrified and obviously sixteen-year-old Harry's mind kicked in because he suddenly opened his mouth willingly. However, when she proceeded to take off his pyjama bottom, he jerked away vehemently.

"Harry, I have to dress you. You can't go to school in your pyjamas," Hermione reprimanded him sternly.

Harry took the thermometer out and pleaded, "I dwess mysewf pwease, Mione."

Hermione sighed in exasperation. "Then go on and dress yourself, and please keep the thermometer in your mouth this time." Before the child could reply, she stuck the snake back into his mouth and turned around, knowing that Harry was not aware of the fact that she could watch him in the window, because it was still dark outside. The first thing she saw was that Harry quickly took the snake out again. Hermione sighed inwardly. Then he struggled to take his pyjama bottom off, finally succeeding. However, his small hands tried in vain to pull his underpants up, and finally, he said in a small voice, "Mione hewp me pwease?"

Hermione quickly turned around and dressed Harry, noticing that his face had turned to a deep red colour. "There is no need to be embarrassed, Harry," she said soothingly, before she picked him up along with the snake thermometer. She carried him down into the living room, sat down on the sofa with Harry on her nap, and carefully stuck the thermometer under his armpit, before she firmly pressed his arm against his body. With the other hand, she force-fed him a small breakfast, threatening once more to take him to the hospital wing, if he didn't comply.

When the thermometer finally beeped and flared orange, she glanced at the numbers that said, "38.4" and stopped feeding the child. "I believe that your behaviour is due to your feeling unwell, Harry," she told him, while she cleaned him up and considered if he was well enough to rest in his playpen in the classroom or if she needed to take him to Madam Pomfrey.

However, by the time they reached Minerva's office, the first class was going to start soon, and Minerva wasn't back yet, so that Hermione had to take Harry to class with her, knowing that she would be much too late for Potions if she took the detour over the hospital wing. With Harry on her arm and her school bag over her shoulder the girl hurried down to the dungeons and managed to arrive at the Potions classroom just before the professor shut the door.

"Five points for your tardiness, Ms. Granger," the teacher sneered, but Hermione proceeded to ignore the man. She put Harry down on the floor and sat down, before she pulled the child on her lap, who turned to the teacher.

"Isn't Mione's fauwt. She wookded after me cause Mummy had to wowk," he explained in his high, childish voice, causing everyone to laugh.

The teacher chose to take no notice of the child, and Harry turned around, watching his friend in concern. "Mione awwight?" he asked softly.

"Of course, sweetie," Hermione replied and gave the small child a smile that didn't really reach her eyes. In fact she had a tremendous headache and felt worse than on the day before.

She suddenly noticed that the professor had asked her something. "Do you intend to brew potions with a child on your lap?" Snape repeated his question.

"I'm sorry, Professor, I intended to leave Harry in the Transfiguration classroom but Professor McGonagall wasn't there yet, and since he is having a fever I thought it would be the best if he could sleep on my lap," Hermione replied softly.

"Mr. Malfoy, please fetch Ms. Granger's ingredients for her," the professor instructed the blonde Slytherin after a glance in Hermione's flushed face, causing the whole class to throw him a surprised look.

To Hermione's great astonishment, Draco obeyed without even blinking. '_Well, who knows what Snape or the Headmaster have told him after he de-aged Harry_,' she mused. '_Snape won't be happy with him since he had to take one hundred points off Slytherin_.' During the rest of the double Potions class, she tried hard to concentrate on her potion, while Harry was peacefully asleep on her lap, Naky tucked safely under his arm.

After an infinite time, the class was finally over and Hermione sighed in relief. '_That was the first time I really messed up with a potion_,' she thought, while she waved her wand to clean up her workspace, startled when all of a sudden an icy cold hand came to lie on her forehead.

"Ms. Granger, I believe Madam Pomfrey released you too early," the Potions Master's soft, silky voice penetrated her ear. Please go to the hospital wing and tell the Healer that I sent you," the teacher said, gently handing the girl her bag when she stood and pulled Harry up, so that his small head came to lie on her shoulder."

"All right Professor, thank you," Hermione replied and obediently headed to the hospital wing, where the Mediwitch kept her and Harry for the day.

When Minerva came to the hospital wing in concern, Harry was still fast asleep, and his adoptive mother sat down on the edge of Hermione's bed to enquire what had happened to aggravate her condition. Not able to lie to her favourite teacher, Hermione told the woman how Harry had behaved in the morning, only to add, "Please don't punish him, Professor. I think he behaved like that because he felt horrible due to his illness and embarrassed on top of everything."

Minerva sighed. "I think you're right; nevertheless, Harry has to learn that he can't behave like that, and I'm going to think about something. Since I can't put him in time out and I can't make him write lines at that age, he'll probably go without desert at dinner."

When Pomfrey let them go right in time for dinner, Harry was feeling much better and ran ahead to the Great Hall, hurrying to the Head table to search for his Mummy, whom he hadn't seen at all during the day. Minerva cuddled him close, before she put him in his children's chair.

"Hello Pwofessow Napy," Harry said friendly when he noticed, who was sitting on his other side.

"Hello Harry, did you have a nice long sleep?" the teacher asked, smirking.

"Ye," Harry replied, "wif Naky." He showed Snape his snake that was firmly tucked under his arm.

Minerva tried hard to make Harry eat a few bites of his dinner and when she saw Harry's eyes light up at the sight of desert, she couldn't bring it over her to forbid him to have a small bowl of fruit salad. '_At least he eats something_,' she thought, relieved to see the child tuck in with gusto. However, as soon as Harry had finished his fruits salad, Minerva turned to the child in a very stern voice.

"Harry, you were very bold towards Hermione this morning. You will go and apologize to her right now. Do you understand me?"

"Now?" Harry asked horrified. "But dewe awe so many tudens. Can I tell Mione I sowwy latew on? Please Mummy."

"No Harry, you will go right now," Minerva insisted, and Harry grudgingly climbed out of his chair.

"I sowwy Mione fow being bowld dis mownin," he muttered, standing half behind the girl and looking at the floor.

"It's all right, sweetie," Hermione replied, pulling Harry onto her lap, before she placed a kiss on his forehead.

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In the morning, Harry's condition had improved so much that Madam Pomfrey decided to give him the aging potion. Unfortunately, Harry was in a lot of pain after his body had stretched to that of a four-year-old like it had been before when he was aged up to three years. Fortunately, it was a Saturday, and Minerva and Harry could stay at home until the pain receded and Harry felt well enough to accompany his Mummy to Hogwarts at lunchtime.

"Mummy, may I eat lunch with Hermione at the Gryffindor table?" Harry asked pleadingly, and Minerva couldn't help laugh at the small boy's enthusiasm.

"Yes you may," she replied, smiling.

"Harry, are you going to join us?" Katie asked eagerly. "We're going to have Quidditch practice right after lunch, because the match against Slytherin is next week."

"Yes of course," Harry replied and turned to Hermione. "Can you get my broom, Mione? I'm not 'loud to take the Floo alone."

"I can get your broom, but first I'm going to ask your Mum if you may play Quidditch at all," the girl replied resolutely, standing up.

Fortunately Minerva agreed to let Harry play, provided that all of the Bludgers were transfigured into soft balls, and twenty minutes later, Harry was taking into the air together with his team mates, not noticing that heavy snow clouds were coming up in the sky. After an hour, Harry was still feverishly looking for the Snitch, when he heard someone shout, "Get down everyone; the snowstorm is going to start!"

'_But I have to find the Snitch first_,' he thought, finally spotting a golden flash in between the first snow flakes. A minute later, he managed to firmly close his hand around the struggling small ball and began to dive down in full speed.

However, before Harry could reach the ground right in front of the entrance doors to the castle, the storm picked up and blew the light, small child on his broom right into the Forbidden Forest, where he came to land behind a large tree in the now heavily falling snow.

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HP

_Please don't kill me (Poppy goes into hiding for the night). Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 2****1**

Shivering in the cold snow, four-year-old Harry thought frantically what to do, before finally his sixteen-year-old mind kicked in and decided to transform into his phoenix form and flash into the safety of the castle. He flashed into a dark corner of the entrance hall, where he transformed back and showed himself to his worried team mates.

"Harry! Thank God you're safe," Hermione blurted out, throwing a drying charm at him, before she pulled him into a bear hug.

"Mummy, may I play in the Quidditch match on Saturday?" Harry asked as soon as he spotted Minerva enter the entrance hall with a concerned expression on her face.

"Did everyone made it safely back into the castle?" Minerva asked worriedly, pulling Harry close.

"Yes; at least we didn't see anyone else," Katie replied firmly. "Harry was the last to come in."

"Mummy! May I play in the match against Slytherin?" Harry enquired once more, jumping up and down as soon as Minerva released him from her firm grip.

The deputy headmistress sighed. "Let's see how old you're on Saturday and how your condition is, Harry." To Katie, she said, "I'm going to inform you as soon as possible, but even in the match we need to use the transfigured Bludgers; otherwise it would be too dangerous."

"All right, Professor. We'd appreciate it very much, if Harry could play, because he is irreplaceable as Seeker," the girl replied, giving her Head of House a pleading look.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

On Sunday morning, Harry was aged up to five. "Let's give him another dose of the potion today, because you can stay at home with him," Poppy told Minerva after checking on Harry in the morning. "However, I suggest leaving him at five for a few days. We can give him the next dose on Wednesday, provided that he is well enough. If I might suggest something to you, Minnie," she added hesitantly, "if I were you, I'd take him out to Diagon Alley or somewhere today, considering that he'll probably already be six or seven next weekend. In fact, I'd take him to the zoo, but I don't think it would be wise considering the amount of snow we had since yesterday."

"That's true, and we are in dire need of books for Harry's age," Minerva replied pensively, "however, I'd have to ask Albus."

"Then just go on and ask him, Minnie. He won't say no as long as you're back in time for dinner."

When Harry woke up groggily around lunchtime, Minerva was sitting on the edge of his bed, watching him in concern. "How are you feeling, sweetie?" she asked softly, gently stroking his cheeks.

"I'm fine, Mummy," Harry replied, smiling. "May I get up?"

"Yes, you may," Minerva replied after carefully feeling his forehead to confirm that it felt cool. "Would you like to go to the bookshop in Diagon Alley, Harry?"

"Yes!" Harry shouted, jumping up and down in excitement. "Can we go immediately?"

"As soon as you've eaten something, sweetie," Minerva replied, smiling.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Minerva and Harry spent the whole afternoon in Diagon Alley shopping. They bought a few books, of which Minerva thought that they might still be of interest when Harry was aged up to seven or eight, and Harry waited patiently when his adoptive mother wanted to choose a few books for herself as well.

"You were very good, sweetie," Minerva told him when they had finally paid for everything and had left the shop. "Is there anywhere else you'd like to go, or shall we eat an ice cream?"

"Ice cream?" Harry asked unbelievingly, before his older mind kicked in and he replied, "I'd like that, but isn't there anything else you wanted to look at, Minerva?"

Minerva pulled him in a close embrace, asking, "Do I guess correctly, if I assume that you never ever had an ice cream before?"

"No, Dudley had, but I'm not allowed ice cream," Harry replied hesitantly.

"Well, now that you're my ward you're allowed," Minerva replied firmly. '_Slowly, I'm going to understand what this boy went through while he lived with his relatives_,' she mused and pulled Harry into the toy shop. "Harry, look around and see if there's something you'd like to have," she told the boy, who was looking at her with wide open eyes.

Harry looked around the shop in total amazement, and when Minerva told him once more to choose something, he decided on a miniature toy version of the Knight Bus, the purple triple bus, which he had ridden once a few years ago.

"Are you sure that the Knight Bus is what you want, Harry?" Minerva confirmed and, seeing Harry hesitantly nod, she paid for the toy and led Harry down the street to Fortesque's ice cream parlour while Harry thanked her happily.

"Mummy?" Harry asked in a small voice when they had reached their aim. "Do we have to eat ice cream? Can't we go home?"

Minerva gave him a surprised look. "Of course we can go home. What's wrong, Harry? Are you feeling unwell?" she asked in concern, causing Harry to giggle.

"No, Mummy, I'm fine, but I'd love to play with my bus," Harry replied, and Minerva saw that his eyes twinkled with joy.

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Harry spent the next few days playing with his bus, and Minerva even had to take the bus out of Harry's bed after he had fallen asleep in the evening. During classes on Monday, Harry sat on the floor of the Transfiguration classroom playing with the Knight Bus, causing the boys to watch him in awe. Several of the first and second year boys joined him after the end of their respective classes, asking if they could push the bus for a short while. Harry only had to wave his hand at the bus to cause it to go, stop, open the doors, and close the doors. The driver and the conductor as well as the five passengers that had been included in the bus set also acted on a wave of Harry's hand.

Only during the third morning class when Minerva had to teach the Gryffindor and Slytherin sixth years, Harry decided to sit on Hermione's lap, playing with his bus on her desk. When Minerva told him to get up and play on the floor after twenty minutes, because she wanted to do the students a pop quiz, Harry was very upset but grudgingly agreed.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

On Wednesday morning, Minerva had the impression that Harry was as well as he had been during the last few days, so that he could receive his next dose of the aging potion. She made him hurry up, so that they could head to Madam Pomfrey's office before the beginning of the first morning class.

"Hi sweetie, how are you, and where is Naky?" Poppy asked gently, while she began to wave her wand at the child.

Harry let out a shocked gasp, realising that he had forgotten the snake at home, but he relaxed somewhat when Minerva quickly replied, "Naky is sick and had to stay in bed this morning."

The Healer chuckled and nodded contentedly. "Well, fortunately Harry is well enough for his next dose of the potion." She motioned the boy to lie down and spelled the potion into his stomach, followed immediately by a pain relieving potion and a light sleeping draught, causing Harry to fall asleep, before he could even notice how much his joints ached.

When Minerva came to look after him at lunchtime, Harry was already sitting on the floor feverishly scribbling something on a parchment. He happily jumped up when she noticed her enter the hospital wing, showing her the parchment. "Look Mummy, I wrote Snaky a letter, so that he will get well soon."

"Oh, sweetie, I'm sure he'll feel much better when he sees that you were so kind to write him a letter," Minerva replied, pulling the six-year-old in a bear hug.

"He's such a cute boy. I'd love to leave him at six for a while," she told Poppy in the evening, when the Healer came to visit her for a cup of tea.

However, on Saturday something happened, which made Minerva change her opinion and wish Harry back to his sixteen-year-old self as fast as possible.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

When Minerva entered Harry's room on Saturday morning, Harry was already awake and completely excited, knowing that the Quidditch match against Slytherin was going to commence in a few hours.

"Hello Mummy, can I play in the match? Mummy, please; I want to play Seeker for the Gryffindor team, all right?"

Minerva let out a tired sigh. '_How can that child have so much energy at that time of the morning_?' she mused and gave him a confirming nod, causing Harry to throw her a huge smile.

However, when she helped Harry to get dressed, she noticed that the boy felt a bit warm to the touch.

"Harry, are you feeling all right? You're a bit warm I think."

"I'm fine," Harry replied a bit too fast.

Minerva sighed, giving the child a piercing look, noticing that his eyes were a little too bright. "I'm sorry, Harry, but I want to take your temperature before we head to the school," she told him, putting the second sock on his right foot.

"No, Mummy, I'm fine," Harry replied as convincing as he could, already racing through the door.

Minerva caught up with the child right in front of the fireplace. "Harry, sit down here this instant," she ordered him sternly, appalled when the boy made no move to comply. "Harry, if you make such a fuss, I have to assume that you're running a fever and that I have to tell Ms. Bell that you cannot play Seeker today."

"No Mummy, I don't have a fever," Harry shouted, jumping up and down on both feet.

"Then let me quickly take your temperature, and we'll be on our way to Hogwarts," Minerva replied, glaring daggers at the child.

"Please, Mummy, let's go. I'm fine," Harry insisted, reaching for the Floo powder.

"Harry, you will either sit down here on the chair to let me check your temperature, or I'm going to put you back to bed, and that's my last word," Minerva said strictly, while she pulled her wand.

Obviously knowing that he wouldn't have a chance to play Quidditch if he didn't comply, Harry grudgingly sat down and let Minerva stick the snake thermometer into his mouth, slightly shivering at the cold touch. In Harry's opinion, the reading took an endlessly long time, and he couldn't help fidgeting continuously, causing Minerva to admonish him to sit quietly several times.

Finally, Minerva pulled the thermometer out, and Harry jumped back to the fireplace without even waiting to hear the result. "Harry, you have a fever, and you won't be able to play Quidditch today," his mother told him strictly. "Since it's not too high with 38.3, you may accompany me to Hogwarts and sit on my lap to watch the match, provided that you feel well enough," she conceded, taking the child in her arms, so that they could step into the fireplace together.

During breakfast, Harry was allowed to sit at the Gryffindor table, after Minerva had told Katie that Harry wasn't able to play Seeker.

"Don't worry, Katie, I am going to play," Harry informed Katie as soon as Minerva had taken her seat at the Head table.

"And how do you think you will manage to play, if your mother is keeping you on her lap?" Hermione asked in annoyance.

"I'm a phoenix Animagus," Harry whispered to the girls. "I'm going to flash into the changing rooms." He handed Katie his shrunken broom that he had put into his robe pocket in the morning as soon as he noticed that his head and his eyes were sore again.

An hour later, Harry headed out to the Quidditch pitch together with Hermione. "Are you going to sit with me?" the girl asked, not exactly sure what Harry was planning to do.

Harry thought for a moment. "Well, I think I should better sit near my Mum. She'll be very angry afterwards, but then at least she can't be angry at you, Mione," he said reasonably.

"That's true, Harry," Hermione replied, slightly relieved that Harry's sixteen-year-old mind seemed to have taken the overhand for a moment. "But please be careful, Harry. I love you, and I don't want you get hurt," she added hesitantly.

"I love you too, Mione, and I promise I'll be careful," Harry replied and headed to the teachers' seats, where he sat between the Gryffindor and the Slytherin Heads of House.

"Are you feeling all right?" Minerva asked in concern, giving the child a piercing look. "Come onto my lap if you feel cold."

"It's all right, Mummy; I'm fine," Harry replied softly, causing Minerva to snort. He remained in his seat, cuddling Snaky and trying to calm his excited mind. Two minutes before the beginning of the match, he turned to Minerva and said, "Sorry, Mum, but I have to do that." Ignoring her questioning look, he transformed into his phoenix form and flashed into the Gryffindor changing room, where he changed back immediately, causing the team to let out relieved sighs.

"Can you transfigure my clothes into the Quidditch outfit please?" he asked Katie, grabbed his broom as soon as she complied, and the complete team took in the air.

Harry had to try hard to concentrate on searching the Snitch instead of thinking how angry his Mummy would be right now. An hour later, he noticed that his headache was getting worse by the hour and that his vision was a bit blurry.

"Harry, a Bludger!" Ginny's voice pulled him out of his reverie.

Harry quickly dodged the Bludger and all of a sudden the Snitch was hovering right in front of his eyes. He shot forward and firmly gripped the small ball that was struggling to escape his grip, before he hurriedly headed downwards and proudly handed the Snitch to Madam Hooch.

"Gryffindor wins! 370 – 190 in favour of Gryffindor," her voice penetrated his ear, and in the blink of an eye Harry was surrounded by his cheering House mates.

"That was brilliant, Harry," Katie cheered, placing a hand on the child's head, ruffling his hear.

Ginny pulled him in a bear hug. "You did it, sweetie! Very well done, Harry."

"Thanks Katie, Ginny," Harry replied wearily, suddenly remembering that he still had to face his guardian and that he probably would be a very sorry little boy afterwards. '_I'd better face her as soon as possible_,' he thought anxiously and excused himself.

"I'd better go and face our Head of House," he told the girls. "She will be extremely angry."

"I believe that, Harry. Shall I accompany you?" Ginny offered gently, but Harry turned the offer down.

"Thanks, Ginny, but I don't think that would help me much. I just have to face her."

However, all of a sudden he felt someone grab his arm and turned around to face a very irate Professor Snape. "Potter! Professor McGonagall, who is not only your Head of House but also your guardian, explicitly forbade you to play Quidditch today, but of course you knew better than to obey. Therefore, you will do detention with me five days during the afternoon classes, during which you will clean dirty cauldrons for your insolence. Your detention will commence on Monday afternoon, provided that Madam Pomfrey deems you fit enough," he added when Harry let out a series of sneezes.

"Yes Professor," Harry replied, while he quickly pulled Snaky out of his robe pockets, cuddling the snake close in order to prevent himself from crying in front of the whole school.

Harry turned around to look for Minerva, noticing that she was standing right behind him. "I'm sorry, Mummy," he sobbed, unable to prevent the tears from pouring down anymore.

"I hope that you´re sorry, Harry," Minerva replied in a very stern voice, looking piercingly at the small boy. "You were extremely naughty today. I know that Professor Snape already gave you detention; however, as your guardian I'm going to punish you additionally. I'm sorry, but I hope that you'll be able to understand my reasons." She gave Harry a close look.

"Yes, I understand," Harry replied quickly in order to get over with the matter. '_I hate it when she is so angry with me_,' he mused, while he gave Minerva a weary look, pondering what the stern teacher would choose as his punishment.

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HP

_Thanks for your kind reviews! I am not a native speaker of English. So please excuse my mistakes – or tell me, so that I can correct them!_

_All recognizable characters belong to J.K.Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

"You won't be allowed to fly anymore until the end of the Christmas holidays, while your broom will remain in my office. Also, you will write one hundred times, "I have to obey instead of aggravating my condition."

"Yes, Mummy," Harry replied, inwardly groaning. '_My six year old fingers are too clumsy; it'll take me ages to write that one hundred times_,' he mused wearily, while he followed his adoptive mother up to her office. That was at least what he thought, before he found himself in front of the hospital wing.

Minerva made Madam Pomfrey check on Harry, and she told her that he had a slight cold apart from his normal eye problems and ordered him to stay in bed for the rest of the day.

"Thank you, Poppy," the Gryffindor Head of House told the Healer and ushered Harry into the office, from where they took the Floo home immediately.

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The next week was horrible for Harry. His condition was a bit better, so that Minerva took him to the hospital wing every morning, where Madam Pomfrey gave him the aging potion and let him rest until lunchtime, and after lunch he had to serve detentions in the Potions classroom, before his guardian came to fetch him and floo home with him.

When they returned home in the evenings, Harry was always exhausted from scrubbing cauldrons all afternoon, and Minerva sent him to bed straight after dinner.

"Tomorrow, you'll have to write your lines, Harry," Minerva told an eleven-year-old Harry in her soft voice when she tucked him in on Friday evening.

"Yes Mum," Harry mumbled lazily, already falling asleep, before a thought struck his mind and he once more opened his eyes. "Will I be aged up to sixteen tomorrow?" he asked anxiously.

"If your condition is well enough," Minerva replied, "or do you want to remain eleven for a while? I don't mind, sweetie; that's your decision.

"I'd like to be back to sixteen," Harry mumbled, lazily closing his eyes again.

However, in the middle of the night, Harry woke up feeling absolutely horrible. Not only his head and his eyes were sore but also his throat and he felt extremely hot and icy cold at once. He scrambled out of his bed and dragged himself over into Minerva's bedroom.

"Mum, I don't feel good," he mumbled, climbing up onto the bed, causing Minerva to wake up with a jolt.

"Harry, what's wrong?" she asked, pulling the child into her arms, frowning at the heat he radiated. "Oh my, you're hot, aren't you?"

"And cold," Harry whispered, causing the teacher to summon the snake thermometer. "Harry, let me quickly take your temperature, so that I know if it's bad enough to call Poppy," she told the shivering child, before she stuck the snake under his armpit and cuddled him close.

"Snaky," Harry whimpered with chattering teeth, shivering at the cold touch of the cold snake under his arm.

"I'll get you snaky," Minerva promised, summoning the stuffed snake from Harry's bed, gently holding it out for Harry, who immediately cuddled it close.

"40.8," Minerva read horrified and looked at her watch. '_4:30, that's fairly early, but nevertheless I'm going to call Poppy_,' she mused and headed to the fireplace to call her best friend.

Poppy calmly waved her wand at the sick child, before she tucked her wand away, pulling a potions phial out of her bag. "That's a flu bug, which is going around the castle at the moment. He'll have a fever of forty degrees for twenty-four hours, and then he'll be fine again. I already had twenty of these cases during the last two days. Give him a spoon full of this potion every four hours, and as soon as you notice that you're feeling unwell, you have to take it as well. The earlier you counter it, the less uncomfortable you'll be since I'm sure that you'll get it as well. Two days of bed rest in any case," she added sternly.

"What about you?" Minerva asked in concern.

"I should be immune against this bug," her friend replied sighing. "I'll come by to look after you later on."

Harry and Minerva remained the whole weekend in bed cuddling since Minerva became ill a few hours after Harry.

"I'm sorry, Mum, for getting you ill," Harry croaked, still feeling absolutely horrible.

"No problem, sweetie; the last time I got you ill, didn't I?" Minerva asked back hoarsely, nestling deeper under her covers.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Only on Friday morning, which was the last day of classes before the winter holidays, Harry's condition was so good that Minerva deemed him well enough to take the aging potion if he wanted. "Harry, do you want to attend classes, or would you prefer to take the aging potion this morning?" Minerva asked on their way down the stairs to the Great Hall.

"I don't know," Harry replied unsurely. '_I'd love to see Hermione; I haven't been able to speak with her since the Quidditch match_,' he mused. "Can't I get the aging potion after classes?"

Minerva sighed. "At the moment, you don't have a fever, so that it would be possible, but I don't know how your condition will be after a full day of classes. I suggest that you take it now, and as soon as Poppy deems you well enough you can attend the remaining classes."

"All right," Harry replied, looking the Gryffindor table up and down in search for Hermione.

"Hermione is ill in case you're looking for her. She has the twenty-four-hours bug," Ginny informed him, smiling at the cute eleven year old, who looked extremely disappointed at the news.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

After breakfast, Minerva accompanied him to the hospital wing, leading him to the last empty bed in the room, where he lay down, giving his guardian and the Mediwitch a frightened look.

"Oh sweetie, what's wrong?" Poppy asked softly. "This is not the first time, and you already know what's going to happen, don't you?"

"Yes, but this time it's five years," Harry replied in a small voice and closed his eyes, cuddling snaky close.

"Minerva, you better go," Poppy whispered. "This won't be pleasant. However, I'll give him a pain relieving potion and a strong sleeping draught at the same time, so that he won't be in pain or notice anything at all. Don't worry; he'll be right as rain when you come back after classes."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

The next thing Harry knew was that his body felt as if he were back to sixteen and that it was already dark outside. His joints only ached slightly, but otherwise he felt well. He sat up and reached for his glasses.

"Harry, are you awake?" a voice from the bed next to him all of a sudden penetrated his ears and he saw Hermione come over to his own bed, sitting down next to him.

"Mione," Harry said amazed, pulling the girl into an embrace without even thinking about what he was doing. "Are you all right, Mione?" he asked in concern, noticing that the girl felt very hot to the touch and seemed to have a high fever.

"Well yes, I have this twenty-four hours bug; we have to be careful so that you won't get it from me," the girl replied, tiredly leaning into Harry's cool touch.

"It's all right; I already had it last weekend," Harry replied, cuddling her close. "Mione, um... I'm sorry about how I behaved when I was de-aged," he told the girl in a soft voice, while he gently wiped her flushed cheeks.

"It's all right, Harry. I enjoyed the time with your younger self a lot, although I sometimes missed your sixteen-year-old self. I'm glad to have you back," she added, pulling him into a kiss.

"Mione, um... Would you... um... would you perhaps be willing to be my girlfriend?" Harry asked hesitantly, averting his eyes to his hands.

"Of course I'd like to be your girlfriend, sweetie," Hermione replied softly, nestling closer into his strong arms.

With a huge smile Harry turned his eyes back to face the girl, noticing that she was shivering violently. "Let me warm you," he whispered, pulling her close and draping his covers over her, before he captured her mouth with his own for a long kiss.

"Let's lie down," he whispered, feeling his temperature rise at the contact with her heated body.

Hermione wearily obeyed, giving him a grateful smile when he gently tucked her in under the warm covers and once more cuddled her close.

"We'll be in so much trouble when your mother comes back after classes," Hermione croaked, kissing Harry passionately.

"How late is it? Classes? It's already dark outside," Harry replied in surprise. "I thought I couldn't stay here overnight."

"It's only two or three in the afternoon. A snowstorm is raging outside; that's why it is so dark," Hermione told him, "and Madam Pomfrey is in Ravenclaw for the afternoon since the whole Ravenclaw tower is ill."

"That's good," Harry mumbled in relief. "Then we have at least two hours."

The two friends spent the afternoon cuddling and kissing, warming each other without being disturbed by anyone.

"I wished Madam Pomfrey wouldn't release me tonight," Hermione suddenly spoke up, giving Harry a sad look.

"Why?" Harry asked incredulously. "Do you like it here? I don't think she'll release you seeing how hot you are." He gently laid a hand on the girl's forehead. "No, you feel much cooler now," he said astonished.

"I don't think that I'm cooler; the fever should last until tonight at least," the girl replied, worriedly feeling Harry's forehead. "You feel as hot as my own skin," she stated. "Are you feeling well?" She gave him a piercing look, noticing that his eyes were glazed over feverishly.

"As long as I'm in your arms, I feel completely well," Harry replied, noticing that his voice was fading into non existence. "Why don't you want to be released?" he enquired softly.

"Because I don't want to return home tomorrow; I wished I could stay with you over the holidays," Hermione replied hoarsely.

"Speak to my Mum; I'm sure she can arrange something, so that you can stay at Hogwarts or at home with me," Harry whispered, proceeding to kiss her again.

Suddenly, they heard the bell announcing the end of classes for the day.

"I better go back to my own bed," Hermione said softly, giving Harry a last passionate kiss, before she lay down in the bed next to her boyfriend.

Due to the loss of warmth, Harry began to shiver violently. He put his glasses away and nestled deeper into his covers when he heard his mother and her friend enter the room at the same time.

"How are you feeling, sweetie?" Minerva asked, sitting down on the edge of his bed.

"All right," Harry replied, throwing her a smile that didn't really reach his eyes, causing his mother to worriedly place a cool hand on his forehead.

"You're not all right at all," she stated, looking for Madam Pomfrey.

The Healer just pointed her wand at Hermione's head and said sternly, "Your fever is still exceeding forty degrees, and I won't be able to release you today. Therefore, I'm afraid you can't return home tomorrow since I need you to remain at least one more day for observation. Professor McGonagall will contact your parents accordingly."

"All right," Hermione replied, smiling, and talked to her Head of House about the option of remaining at Hogwarts over the holidays.

Madam Pomfrey came over to Harry, casting several diagnostic spells, before she frowned, looking at the boy in concern. "The effects of the aging potion seem to be gone, but I'm afraid you're coming down with something else. You're running a fever of 39 degrees. Minerva, I want to keep Harry here tonight for observation. I don't know if it's his normal eye problem or something else. Severus told me he has finally managed to brew a cure for Harry, but he still needs to test it during the holidays. He'll probably able to heal you in a few weeks, Harry."

"Oh, that's brilliant," Harry replied and obediently gulped down the fever reducer, before a huge smile spread on his face.

"Mum! Hermione agreed to become my girlfriend," he told the professor in a hoarse but excited voice. "I'm so happy!"

"Congratulations you two," Minerva replied, smiling. "I couldn't have wished for a nicer girlfriend for my son. I'm very happy too. Hermione, if you wish, you may spend the holidays at home with us."

"Thank you," Hermione croaked in delight and threw her boyfriend an overjoyed smile.

**The End**

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_Thanks to all those, who reviewed, for their support and encouragement. As you know, I'm not a native speaker of English; please excuse my mistakes or tell me, so that I can correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to __Mrs. Rowling__, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


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